THE  LIBRARY 

OF 

THE  UNIVERSn 
OF  CALIFORI 

LOS  ANGEL! 


AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 
VOLUME  I 


'  1  in1  Sailin-r  <>i  (lie  <  •  riiimi  " 


l',u,,/  I,,  tlu:  //,,•/,„•,•,.„/  nuildln,  Uurf'alv 


AN  OLD  FRONTIER 
OF  FRANCE 

The  Niagara  Region  and  Adjacent 
Lakes  under  French  Control 


BY 

FRANK  H.  SEVERANCE 

Author  of  "Old  Trails  on  the  Niagara  Frontier, 
"Studies  of  the  Niagara  Frontier,"  "The 
Story  of  Joncaire,"  etc. 


ILLUSTRATED 


IN  TWO  VOLUMES 
VOL.     I 


NEW  YORK 

DODD,  MEAD  AND  COMPANY 
1917 


COPYRIGHT,  1917, 
BY  FRANK  H.  SEVERANCE 


TO 
ANDREW  DICKSON  WHITE 

KDrCATUK.    DIPLOMAT 

MY  TEACHKR   IN    YOl'TII.    MY 
FRIEND  THROUGH  MANY  YEARS 

These  volumes  are  inscribed  as  a  testimonial 

of  personal  regard  and  in  appreciation 

of  his  distinguished  services  to 

his  fellow  men 


ACKNOWLEDGMENT 

Acknowledgment  is  duo,  for  help  received,  to  many  persons. 
My  inquiries  led  me  to  the  Canadian  Archives  when  that  of- 
fice was  under  the  charge  of  the  late  Douglas  Brymner,  whose 
cordial  assistance  and  friendly  interest  in  my  undertaking  it 
is  pleasant  to  recall.  I  am  no  less  under  obligations  to  the 
present  Dominion  Archivist,  Dr.  A.  C.  Doughty,  and  to  his 
librarian,  Miss  Magdalen  Casey.  In  Paris,  in  that  ancient 
portion  of  the  Louvre  known  as  the  Pavilion  du  Flores,  which 
the  Government  has  used  in  recent  years  as  a  depository  of 
maps  and  documents,  the  late  M.  Victor  Tantet  first  showed 
to  me  the  original  drawings  of  Chaussegros  de  Lery  the  elder, 
according  to  which  Fort  Niagara  Avas  built ;  and  since  I  might 
not  carry  off  the  originals,  assisted  me  in  procuring  copies 
of  these  and  other  useful  material.  It  was  a  friend,  resident 
at  Grenoble,  who  searched  the  parish  records  of  St.  Hugues 
church  in  that  old  town  to  discover  the  baptismal  name  of 
Captain  Francois  Pouchot.  The  Rev.  J.  J.  Aboulin  of  St. 
Ann's  church,  Detroit,  has  obligingly  supplied  data  from  the 
records  of  that  ancient  parish,  relating  to  Chabert-Joncaire 
and  family.  From  Mrs.  John  P.  Bronson  of  Monroe,  Mich., 
a  great-great-granddaughter  of  Chabert-Joncaire,  and  from 
Mr.  F.  H.  Maisonville,  Detroit,  also  of  the  same  family,  I  have 
received  welcome  assistance.  Mr.  Lewis  Johnstone  of  Tomp- 
kinsville,  N.  Y.,  very  kindly  supplied  the  letters  written  from 
Niagara  during  and  after  the  siege  by  the  Rev.  John  Ogilvie. 
Mr.  Benjamin  Suite  of  Ottawa,  to  whom  I  have  more  than 
once  appealed,  with  unstinted  courtesy  and  patience  has  given 
me  the  benefit  of  his  great  knowledge  of  French  Canadian  fami- 
lies and  institutions.  I  have  also  been  the  beneficiary  of  many 
librarians  and  officers  of  institutions;  among  others  Mr. 
George  Parker  Winship,  late  of  the  Carter  Brown  library, 
Providence,  R.  I.:  Mr.  Clarence  S.  Brigham,  American  An- 

vii 


viii  ACKNOWLEDGMENT 

tiquarian  Society,  Worcester,  Mass. ;  Mr.  Wilberforce  Eames, 
formerly  of  the  Lenox,  now  of  the  New  York  Public  Library; 
Mr.  Victor  H.  Paltsits,  New  York  Public  Library ;  Messrs.  A. 
J.  F.  Van  Laer  and  Peter  Nelson,  New  York  State  Library, 
Albany ;  Mr.  W.  H.  Cathcart,  Western  Reserve  Historical  So- 
ciety, Cleveland,  O. ;  Mr.  Clarence  M.  Burton,  the  Burton  Li- 
brary, Detroit. 

To  this  list  it  is  a  pleasure  to  add  the  names  of  my  long- 
time friends,  Mr.  John  Miller  of  Erie,  Pa.,  and  Mr.  Brayton 
L.  Nichols,  of  Westfield  and  Buffalo,  with  whom,  on  sundry 
pleasant  occasions,  I  have  traversed  the  old  portage  roads, 
from  Presqu'  Isle  (Erie)  to  Le  Boeuf,  and  from  Westfield  to 
Chautauqua  Lake,  and  gained  some  familiarity  with  conditions 
of  old. 

It  may  not  be  out  of  place  to  add  that  during  the  prepara- 
tion of  this  work  I  have  passed  over  every  portage  route  touch- 
ing these  lakes,  and  have  visited  every  place  of  historic  import 
on  the  lakes  and  the  portages  mentioned  in  the  narrative.  As 
for  the  Niagara,  with  its  wealth  of  scenic  and  historic  sites 
and  associations,  its  picturesque  portage  and  its  gray  old  fort, 
it  has  been  my  pleasure-ground,  from  lake  to  lake,  for  more 
than  thirty  years. 

F.  H.  S. 

Buffalo,  N.  Y. 


PREFACE 

My  purpose  in  the  following  study  has  been  to  record,  with 
all  useful  detail,  the  events  of  French  occupancy  in  the  region 
of  the  Niagara  and  adjoining  lakes;  and  I  would  here  antici- 
pate a  possible  criticism  —  that  my  pages  are  overladen  with 
details  —  by  stating  that  it  was  a  desire  to  know  what  had 
happened  in  the  region  during  the  time  it  was  dominated  by 
France,  a  desire  to  make  the  facts  available  for  others,  and  an 
inability  to  find  many  of  them  in  existing  works,  that  induced 
me  to  write  the  narrative  that  follows. 

If  I  have  seldom  turned  aside  from  the  mere  recording  of 
events,  to  remark  on  the  policies  of  the  Powers  which  were 
rivals  in  the  region,  or  on  the  consequences  of  their  conduct,  it 
is  because  I  have  felt  that  the  truest  exposition  of  these  am- 
bitions of  courts,  these  failures  or  achievements  of  Ministries, 
lay  in  setting  forth  as  simply  and  clearly  as  possible,  the  things 
that  were  done.  The  student  of  history,  like  the  scientist, 
is  on  safest  ground  when  he  draws  his  conclusions  from  an  as- 
semblage of  facts.  Such  a  contribution  to  historical  study, 
this  work  is  designed  to  be ;  and  those  most  familiar  with  the 
subject  will  perhaps  be  first  to  note  that  the  narrative  here 
offered  supplements  rather  than  duplicates  existing  works  of 
wider  scope.  An  especial  aim  has  been,  to  present  new  matter ; 
minimizing,  so  far  as  consistent,  the  narration  of  episodes  else- 
where adequately  recorded. 

The  customai\y  claim  of  those  who  have  engaged  at  all  in 
research  work,  may  fairly  be  made  here:  The  work  is  based 
on  original  sources.  Events  relating  to  Franciscan  and  Jesuit 
missions  are  necessarily  drawn  from  the  published  Relations 
of  those  Orders.  For  La  Salle  and  his  times,  I  have  trusted 
to  the  documents  collected  bv  Pierre  Margry,  and  have  made 
more  ample  use  of  them,  it  is  believed,  than  has  heretofore 
been  done,  in  relation  to  the  particular  region  here  under  study. 

ix 


x  PREFACE 

The  narrative  of  La  Hontan,  written  by  a  participant  in  the 
events  described,  is  assuredly  a  source,  and  a  useful  one,  for 
our  history.  To  the  journals  of  De  Baugy,  Perrot,  Ma- 
lartic,  Captain  Pouchot,  Bonnefons,  Captain  La  Force  and 
others  existing  only  in  French  editions,  I  am  also  much  in- 
debted. 

Chapters  Ten  to  Fifteen,  printed  in  the  Publications  of  the 
Buffalo  Historical  Society,  Vol.  IX.,  under  the  title,  "The 
Story  of  Joncaire,"  have  been  revised  and  are  here  given  their 
proper  place.  In  writing  them  much  that  was  useful  was 
found  in  the  London  and  Paris  documents  which  constitute 
respectively  volumes  five  and  nine  of  the  "  Documents  relative 
to  the  Colonial  History  of  the  State  of  New  York."  Other 
sources  drawn  en  for  this  portion  of  the  narrative  are,  the 
Provincial  Records  of  Pennsylvania  and  the  unprinted  "  Cor- 
respondance  Generate  "  of  the  Paris  Archives.  Considerable 
use  has  been  made  of  the  collection  known  as  the  Moreau  St. 
Mery  papers.  There  is  also  some  slight  indebtedness  to  the 
short  but  precious  "  Hlstoire  du  Canada  "  of  the  Abbe  de  Bel- 
mont;  the  "  Histoire  de  VAmerique  septentrionale "  of  De 
Bacqueville  de  La  Potherie  (Paris,  1722)  ;  the  works  of  Charle- 
voix  and  one  or  two  other  chroniclers  who  were  contemporary 
with  the  events  of  which  they  wrote.  Very  slight  use  has  been 
made  of  Hennepin,  who  gives  us  little  not  found  in  more  trust- 
worthy form  elsewhere. 

The  Messrs.  Joncaire,  father  and  sons,  in  this  work  receive 
for  the  first  time,  I  venture  to  claim,  something  of  the  atten- 
tion to  which  their  services  entitle  them.  Much  that  I  give 
regarding  Chabert  Joncaire  2d,  and  his  brother  officers  here- 
abouts, during  the  last  years  of  the  French  control,  especially 
Hugh  Pean  and  Duverger  de  St.  Blin,  is  drawn  from  their  own 
memoirs  and  depositions.  These  were  printed  in  Paris  in  1763 
but  appear  to  have  remained  unused  by  if  not  unknown  to 
most  students  of  the  subject.  Mr.  Parkman  knew  them,  and 
possessed  some  of  the  reports  of  the  "Affaire  du  Canada"', 
and  in  the  library  of  Harvard  University,  the  present  repos- 
itory of  many  of  his  books,  I  have  found  it  a  pleasure  to  study 
his  own  copies  of  these  very  rare  volumes.  But  Mr.  Park- 


PREFACE  xi 

man  had  no  occasion  to  draw  from  them,  what  they  have  so 
richly  afforded  me :  that  is,  a  wealth  of  details  regarding  the 
operations  of  the  French  on  the  Niagara  and  the  Lakes  in  the 
last  few  years  of  their  domination. 

More  important  than  even  the  rarest  printed  source  here 
drawn  upon,  are  the  unpublished  manuscripts  without  study 
of  which  this  story  could  not  be  told.  These  include  the  jour- 
nals of  Chaussegros  de  Lery,  the  originals  of  which  are  owned 
by  Laval  University,  at  Quebec ;  the  Sir  William  Johnson 
papers  at  Albany,  most  of  which  I  was  so  fortunate  as  to  have 
studied  before  their  partial  destruction  in  the  fire  of  March 
29,  1911 ;  the  orderly-book  of  Joseph  Bull,  and  another  pre- 
served by  John  McKenzie  of  the  44th  Royal  Scots,  kept  dur- 
ing the  Niagara  campaign  of  1759 ;  the  diary  of  Lieut. 
Christopher  Yates ;  numerous  letters  and  documents  from  many 
sources,  which  are  acknowledged  in  the  following  pages ;  and 
above  all,  the  great  collections  of  manuscript  material,  some 
study  of  which  I  have  made  in  the  library  of  the  British  Mu- 
seum, the  Public  Record  Office,  London,  and  various  deposi- 
tories in  France ;  but  which  are  now  in  large  measure  accessi- 
ble, by  means  of  trustworthy  copies,  in  the  Archives  Office  at 
Ottawa. 


CONTEXTS 

VOLUME  I 

PAGE 

ACKNOWLEDGMENT  vii 


PREFACE 


CHAPTER  I 
EARLY  KNOWLEDGE  OF  THE  NIAGARA 

SCOPE  AND  CHARACTER  OF  THIS  STUDY  —  PROGRESS  OF  KNOWL- 
EDGE OF  THE  LAKE  REGION,  AS  SHOWN  BY  EARLY  MAPS  — 
How  THE  WORLD  LEARNED  OF  THE  GREAT  CATARACT    .       .        1 

CHAPTER  II 
BEGINNINGS 

FIRST  WHITE  MAN  IN  THE  NIAGARA  REGION  —  PROBABILITIES 
REGARDING  BRULE  AND  GRENOLLE  —  FRANCISCAN  AND 
JESUIT  MISSIONS  —  DAILLON,  BREBEUF  AND  CHAUMONOT  .  13 

CHAPTER  III 
FRANCE  TAKES  POSSESSION 

DOMINION  OF  FRANCE  OVER  LAKE  ERIE  FORMALLY  PROCLAIMED 
-  I)E   CASSON  AND  GALINEE —  JOLIET  AND  PERE  —  THE 
UNCERTAIN  ADVENTURES  OF  LA  SALLE  —  FRENCH  ENTRY 
UPON   LAKE  ONTARIO 23 

CHAPTER  IV 
A  FAMOUS  EPISODE 

LA  SALLE  AND  His  LIEUTENANTS  OF   1678  —  FORT  DE  CONTY 
-BUILDING  AND  VOYAGE  OF  THE  GRIFFON  — AN  ADVEN- 
TURE ON  LAKE  ERIE  AS  RELATED  BY  LA  SALLE    ....      36 

CHAPTER  V 
A  DRAMA  OF  DISASTER 

STORY  OF  THE  RASCALS  WHO  ROBBED  LA  SALLE  —  TONTY  THE 
FAITHFUL  —  JACQUES  BOURDON,  A  FINE  FIGURE  IN  NIAG- 
ARA HISTORY —  LA  SALLE'S  ACCOUNT  OF  A  LAKE  ONTARIO 
TRAGEDY  5i 


xiv  CONTENTS 

CHAPTER  VI 
FOLLOWERS  OF  LA  SALLE  PAGE 

RETURN  OF  ACCAULT  AND  HENNEPIN  —  LA  SALLE'S  LAST  VISIT 
TO  THE  NIAGARA  REGION  —  THE  ACHIEVEMENTS  OF  TONTY 
—  GRIM  COMEDIES  OF  THE  WILDERNESS 72 

CHAPTER  VII 
LA  BARRE'S  FIASCO 

PERROT  BRINGS  "  THE  ARMY  OF  THE  SOUTH  "  TO  NIAGARA  — 
AWAKENING   OF    ENGLISH    INTEREST   IN    THE    REGION  — 
TRADE  RIVALRY  DEVELOPS  A  TRAGEDY  —  MISADVENTURES 
OF  JOHANNES  ROOSEBOOM 86 

CHAPTER  VIII 
DENONVILLE'S  CAMPAIGN 

THE  EXPEDITION  OF  1687  —  THE  CASE  OF  MARION  LA  FON- 
TAINE —  THE  BUILDING  AND  ABANDONMENT  OF  FORT  DE- 
NONVILLE  —  FATHER  LAMBERVILLE'S  NARRATION  —  CON- 
FLICTING RECORDS 103 

CHAPTER  IX 
WILDERNESS  STRIFE 

ENGLISH  CLAIMS  REASSERTED  —  ADVENTURES  OF  THE  BARON 
LA  HONTAN,  EXPLORER  OF  THE  SOUTH  SHORE  OF  LAKE 
ERIE  —  THE  REVENGE  OF  DUBEAU  —  FRONTENAC'S  RAID 
OF  1696 130 

CHAPTER  X 
JONCAIRE  THE  ELDER 

THE  DOMINANT  FIGURE  OF  His  TIME  ON  THE  NIAGARA  —  THE 
EMBASSY  OF  CLERAMBAUT  D'AIGREMONT  —  Two  NATIONS 
STRIVE  FOR  TRADE  CONTROL  —  RAUDOT  PICTURES 
JONCAIRE .  1-16 

CHAPTER  XI 
ACTIVITIES  OF  JONCAIRE 

THE  MURDER  OF  MONTOUR  —  JONCAIRE  WINS  ENGLISH  EN- 
MITY—  A  TRADE  EPISODE  OF  1717 -- THE  HOUSE  BY  THE 
NIAGARA  RAPIDS  —  A  STORMY  VISIT  FROM  LAWRENCE 
CLAKSSEX 171 


CONTENTS  xv 

CHAPTER  XII 
NIAGARA  AND  THE  WEST  PAGE 

EARLY  TRAVEL  BY  THE  NIAGARA  ROUTE  —  FIRST  WHITE 
WOMEN  OF  THE  WEST  —  THE  BRITISH  COVET  THE  NIAG- 
ARA TRADE  —  THE  HUGUENOT  SPY  OF  THE  NIAGARA  .  .197 

CHAPTER  XIII 
" A  HOUSE  OF  PEACE " 
THE   BUILDING   OF   FORT   NIAGARA  —  SERVICES  OF   JONCAIRE, 

LoNGUEUIL     AND     DE     LERY JoNCAIRfi's     LETTERS     FROM 

THE    FORT  —  AN    IMPORTANT    OUTPOST    FOR    FRANCE    IN 
AMERICA 225 

CHAPTER  XIV 
A  TROUBLESOME  TREATY 

POLITICAL  ASPECT  OF  THE  STRIFE  ON  THE  NIAGARA  —  THE 
TACTFUL  COURSE  OF  GOVERNOR  BURNET  —  FORT  NIAGARA 
AND  THE  FUR  TRADE  —  INCIDENTS  OF  A  PICTURESQUE 
TRAFFIC 251 

CHAPTER  XV 
AXXALS  OF  THE  WILDERNESS 

THE  VENTURES  OF  JOSEPH  LA  FRANCE  —  THE  NIAGARA  MU- 
TINY OF  17-9  —  FATHER  CRESPEL  AT  NIAGARA  —  DEATH 
OF  JoNCAIRE  THE  ELDER TlIE  MYSTERIOUS  RlVER 

CONDE 277 

CHAPTER  XVI 

SOXS  OF  THE  ELDER  JOXCAIRE 

THE  VARIED  SERVICES  OF  PHILIPPE  THOMAS,  DANIEL  AND 
FRANCOIS  DE  JONCAIRE  —  THE  VALUAULE  MEMOIR  OF 
DANIEL  —  EXPEDITION  OF  1739  AND  DISCOVERY  OF  LAKE 
CHAUTAUQUA  —  A  NIAGARA  INCIDENT 303 

CHAPTER  XVII 
IROXDEQUOIT  AXD  OSWEGO 

CLAIMS  AND  CONTESTS  FOR  STRATEGIC  HARBORS —  PROJECTS  OF 
GOVERNOR  CLARKE  AND  IIis  SUCCESSORS — FEATURES  OF 
THE  FUR  TRADE  AT  OSWEGO  — -  FORT  NIAGARA  THREAT- 
ENED .  3:>:; 


xvi  CONTENTS 

CHAPTER  XVIII 
THE  NIAGARA-OHIO  ROUTE  PAGE 

INSEPARABLE  IN  TRACING  THE  STORY  OF  TRADE  AND  WAR  — 
TRAGIC   EPISODES   IN   THE   DEVELOPMENT   OF   THE   GREAT 
CONTEST  —  THE    BROTHERS    JONCAIRE    ON    THE    OHIO  — 
THE  NIAGARA  PORTAGE  FORT 358 

CHAPTER  XIX 
THE  FUR  TRADE  IN  THE  '40'S 

PERPLEXITIES  OF  A  CONTRACTOR  —  EFFECT  OF  THE  WAR  OF 
1744  —  FOUNDING  OF  TORONTO  —  THE  CONVOY  SYSTEM 
—  CELORON'S  EXPEDITION  OF  1748 386 

CHAPTER  XX 
TWO  FAMOUS  EXPEDITIONS 

CELORON'S     UNDERTAKING     OF     1749  —  ADVENTURES   OF   THE 
BROTHERS     JONCAIRE  —  THE     CHAUTAUQUA     PORTAGE  — 
GREAT   BRITAIN    WARNED   FROM   THE   OHIO  —  THE   ABBE 
PICQUET  COMES  TO   NIAGARA       ........   407 


ILLUSTRATIONS 

VOLUME  I 

VIEWS 

"  The   Sailing  of  the   Griffon " Frontispiece 

(From  the  painting  by  Herman  T.  Koerner.) 

"  The  Building  of  the  Griffon  "  (Hennepin)    .       .  Op.    Page     40 

The  Shipyard  of  the  Griffon,  modern  view    .       .  48 

An   imagined   Griffon 50 

A  Lake  Ontario  brig  of  1757 50 

The  Niagara  at  Lewiston 186 

The  Niagara  Gorge 214 

"  A  House  of  Peace  ":     The  Castle,  Fort  Niagara  226 

Kalm's    "  Niagara,"    1751 330 

Old   Fort   Oswego "       348 

One   of   Celoron's   lead   plates 418 

PORTRAITS 

Two  alleged  portraits  of  La  Salle 70 

The   Marquis   de   Denonville 70 

De   Beaujeu "      372 

MAPS  AND  PLANS 

"  An  old  Frontier  of  Franee  " 1 

Long   Point   Bay,   Lake    Erie Page     52 

Signatures    attached    to    the    Five    Nations'    deed  of 

July    19,    1701 "190 

De   Lery's   map   of   Lake    Ontario,    1728    ....  236 

The  great  house,  Fort  Niagara,  plans,   1727    .       .  .                       240 

Second  story,  the  great  house.  Fort  Niagara      .       .  .                       241 

Map  of  1745,  with  Chautauqua  Lake  and  portage  Op.     Page   320 


AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

VOLUME  I 


Ft.Cataraqut. 
Ft.  Frontenac 


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car 

-Barcelona} 

.    'ftZa/re  Chatacoin 
*%*/«    ^auta«<wu 


AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

CHAPTER  I 

EARLY  KNOWLEDGE  OF  THE  NIAGARA 

SCOPE  AND  CHARACTER  OF  THIS  STUDY  —  PROGRESS  OF  KNOWL- 
EDGE OF  THE  LAKE  REGION,  AS  SHOWN  BY  EARLY  MAPS  —  How 
THE  WORLD  LEARNED  OF  THE  GREAT  CATARACT. 

I  INVITE  the  reader  to  a  survey  of  events  in  the  region  of  the 
Niagara  and  the  Lower  Lakes  while  it  was  under  French  con- 
trol, and  of  events  elsewhere  which  had  a  direct  bearing  thereon. 
The  picturesqueness  and  variety  which  make  the  scenic  features 
of  this  region  world-famed  pertain  also  in  no  slight  degree  to 
its  history.  Our  chronicle  is  perforce  a  tale  of  adventure. 

Erie  and  Ontario,  styled  the  Lower  Lakes,  were  part  of  the 
highway  by  which  France  gained  the  interior  of  the  continent. 
Their  story  begins  later  than  that  of  the  St.  Lawrence,  later 
indeed  than  that  of  the  Ottawa  and  the  Upper  Lakes,  by  which 
the  West  was  first  reached.  Forming  part  of  the  story  of  both 
East  and  West,  the  region  also  has  a  concrete  history  of  its 
own. 

By  "  the  Niagara  region,"  to  which  much  of  our  narrative 
will  relate,  is  meant  not  merely  the  borders  of  the  river  from 
Lake  Erie  to  Ontario,  but  more  or  less  broadly  the  country 
contiguous  to  both  lakes  and  river.  It  is  a  region  especially 
linked  with  the  old  routes  southward  into  the  Ohio  Valley,  by 
portages  from  the  eastern  end  of  Lake  Erie,  which  with  the 
Niagara  formed  for  many  years  a  continuous  and  important 
highway  into  the  heart  of  the  continent.  No  study  of  the 
Niagara  region  in  the  days  of  the  French  is  anything  but 
fragmentary  and  inadequate  if  it  fails  to  view  the  Niagara  as 
a  portion  of  a  great  thoroughfare  which  crossed  the  divide 
south  of  Lake  Erie  and  had  as  its  main  objective  the  posts  of 
the  Ohio  Valley,  the  Illinois  country  and  communication  with 
Louisiana. 

1 


2  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

For  many  years  the  Niagara  was  of  less  value  to  the  French 
as  a  gateway  to  the  Western  Lakes  than  as  part  of  a  road, 
difficult,  but  practicable,  to  the  Ohio.  It  must  be  borne  in 
mind  that  when  the  French  spoke  of  the  Ohio,  they  meant  also 
the  Allegheny;  so  that  Le  Boeuf  Creek,  down  which  they 
voyaged  from  present  Waterford  in  Pennsylvania,  and  the 
Conewango,  fed  by  Chautauqua  Lake,  brought  the  Ohio  within 
a  very  few  miles  of  Lake  Erie.  In  lack  of  better  roads,  the 
expeditions  of  the  French  followed  these  usually  inadequate 
waterways  until,  below  Warren  and  Franklin,  they  found  a 
deeper  and  more  reliable  current. 

With  this  delimitation  of  field,  the  study  here  entered  upon 
is  seen  to  be  chiefly  that  of  a  highway ;  of  coming  and  going. 
We  do  not  enter  upon  the  story  of  Detroit.  Of  the  present 
settlements  on  Lake  Erie  the  city  of  Erie  is  the  only  one  which 
has  any  considerable  ties  with  the  French  period.  On  Lake 
Ontario  numerous  communities  do  have,  notably  Kingston  and 
Oswego ;  and  in  less  degree,  Toronto.  Of  the  cities  and  towns 
on  the  Niagara  River,  those  that  are  now  least  were,  in  French 
days,  greatest.  Our  tale  must  largely  relate  to  old  Fort 
Niagara  on  the  Lake  Ontario  shore  at  the  mouth  of  the  river, 
to  the  Fort  Little  Niagara  above  the  falls,  its  site  now  included 
in  that  of  the  city  of  Niagara  Falls,  New  York,  and  to  the 
fourteen  miles  of  road  between,  forming  in  old  days  the  arduous 
Niagara  portage.  In  particular,  the  story  to  be  told  is  of 
that  portion  of  the  Niagara  River  below,  or  north,  of  the  great 
cataract.  Speaking  generally,  one  may  say  of  this  portion  of 
the  river,  since  the  advent  of  the  white  man,  that  its  annals  are 
longer  by  a  century  and  a  half  than  are  those  of  Buffalo  and 
its  populous  vicinity  at  the  other  end  of  the  river.  The  most 
populous  portion  of  the  Niagara  frontier  to-day  will  figure 
least  in  our  story  of  it  under  French  domination.  The  most 
stirring,  the  most  dramatic,  the  most  significant,  events  will 
be  found  centering  around  the  old  fort  at  the  mouth  of  the 
river,  the  sole  remaining  habitation  which  testifies  to  the  period 
of  French  control  on  the  Niagara. 

That  period  ended  with  the  surrender  of  Fort  Niagara  in 
July,  1759.  It  is  less  easy  to  fix  the  date  of  its  beginning. 


EARLY  KNOWLEDGE  OF  THE  NIAGARA          3 

One  might  say,  with  little  fear  of  competent  contradiction,  that 
the  course  of  history  hereabouts  was  modified  by  French  influ- 
ence as  soon  as  the  tribes  dwelling  by  these  lakes  had  news  of 
the  advent  of  Jacques  Cartier  on  the  lower  St.  Lawrence  in 
1535.  The  same  could  be  said  of  most  of  the  American  con- 
tinent as  far  west  as  the  Mississippi.  Yet  for  well  nigh  a 
century  after  that  arrival  we  find  only  scant  tradition,  too 
vague,  too  little  related  to  the  present  purpose,  to  make  it 
worthy  further  consideration. 

Not  even  the  exploits  of  Samuel  de  Champlain  can  be  said 
to  have  materially  modified  the  course  of  Indian  events  in  the 
region  under  notice,  except  as  they  may  have  deepened  into 
hostility  the  natural  antipathy  which  the  occupants  of  a  land 
feel  toward  a  murderous  invader.  It  was  Champlain  who  in 
1609,  on  the  lake  that  bears  his  name,  first  showed  the  Iroquois 
the  death-dealing  magic  of  the  musket,  and  kindled  a  fire  of 
hatred  toward  the  French,  on  the  part  of  the  Iroquois  tribes, 
which  that  nation  was  never  able  to  overcome,  and  had  abundant 
reason  to  rue.  We  do  not  know  the  exact  date  of  the  forma- 
tion of  the  Iroquois  League;  but  there  is  no  question  that  from 
Lake  Champlain  to  Lake  Erie  the  news  of  that  baptism  of 
gun-fire  was  quickly  spread  and  dramatically  told  ;  so  that  even 
among  the  Neuters  on  the  Niagara  and  to  the  north  of  Lake 
Erie,  and  among  the  Erics  to  the  south,  Champlain's  rash  act 
made  the  conception  of  Frenchman  synonymous  with  that  of 
foe.  His  sojourn  among  the  Hurons  to  the  north  of  Lake 
Simcoe,  1615-16,  and  subsequent  passage  across  Lake  Ontario 
and  into  Central  New  York,  could  have  had  no  more  direct 
effect  upon  the  tribes  of  the  Niagara  region  than  to  give  them 
a  keener  apprehension  than  before  of  a  new  element  to  be 
treated  with,  and,  infcrentially,  a  new  enemv.  Champlain's 
interpreter,  Etiennc  Brule,  the  hero  of  adventures  and  a  narrow 
escape  from  death  among  the  Andastcs,  supposedly  on  the  head- 
waters of  the  Susquehanna,  is  conjectured  to  have  been  at  or 
in  the  vicinity  of  the  Niagara,  between  September,  1615,  and 
the  summer  of  1618;  but  conjecture  is  not  history. 

Before  entering  further  upon  a  narrative  of  events  in  the 
region  we  propose  to  study,  it  is  well  to  consider  briefly  the 


4  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

spread  of  knowledge  regarding  it.  This  is  best  accomplished 
by  an  examination  of  a  few  early  maps. 

The  slow  acquisition  of  knowledge  respecting  the  Great  Lakes 
is  realized  when  one  studies  the  early  maps.  The  Sixteenth 
century  maps,  while  they  show  a  gradually  increasing  accuracy 
in  the  Atlantic  coast  line  of  the  American  continent,  and  in 
the  location  of  the  West  Indies,  are  grotesque  and  conjectural 
regarding  the  interior.  The  early  voyagers  received  some  in- 
formation of  the  interior  from  the  aborigines  whom  they  met 
near  the  sea.  It  was  some  such  vague  report  carried  over-seas 
that  led  the  Venetian  map-maker,  Zalterii,1  to  put  on  his  map 
of  1566  a  large  unnamed  river  which  crudely  stands  for  the 
St.  Lawrence,  and  then  to  show,  south  of  it,  a  large  "  lago" 
emptying  into  the  sea  by  a  short  river  "  S.  Lorenzo."  Several 
later  maps,  long  intervals  apart,  gradually  straighten  out  the 
St.  Lawrence,  but  the  region  of  the  Great  Lakes  is  left  a  blank, 
or  filled  in  with  the  imaginings  of  the  engraver. 

From  the  time  of  Cartier,  maps  of  the  northeast  part  of 
America  indicate  the  St.  Lawrence  River. 

Mercator's  great  world-map  of  1569  vaguely  indicates  lakes 
as  sources  of  the  St.  Lawrence.  So  does  a  map  of  Ortelius, 
1570.  Many  other  Sixteenth  century  maps  practically  copied 
the  suggestions  of  Mercator  and  Ortelius,  with  little  approach 
to  greater  accuracy.  The  globe  of  Emeric  Molineaux,  made 
in  1592,  and  still  preserved  in  London,  shows  a  small  lake, 
inland  in  America  beyond  the  St.  Lawrence.  His  map  of  1600 
shows  this  lake,  very  large,  communicating  with  the  sea  to  the 
north  and  the  St.  Lawrence  to  the  east.  This  is  the  proto- 
type of  the  Great  Lakes. 

The  map  of  Marc  Lcscarbot,  1609,  shows  a  "  saut,"  or  fall, 
at  the  extreme  west  of  his  great  river ;  no  doubt  indicated  be- 
cause of  Indian  report  of  Niagara. 

The  fact  that  there  was  a  great  cataract  far  up  the  sources 
of  the  St.  Lawrence  was  known  to  the  early  navigators  and 
settlers,  and  to  map-makers  in  Europe,  before  any  accurate 
information  of  the  Great  Lakes  was  ascertained. 

Champlain's  map  of  1612  gives  us,  in  a  fashion,  the  St. 

i  Harri.sse,  Xo.  295. 


EARLY  KNOWLEDGE  OF  THE  NIAGARA          5 

Lawrence,  and,  for  the  first  time,  Lake  Champlain.  The  St. 
Lawrence  flows  from  a  large  unnamed  lake  (Ontario)  into  the 
western  end  of  which  empties  a  stream,  the  outlet  of  a  "  great 
lake  300  leagues  long."  Near  the  mouth  of  the  connecting 
stream  is  marked:  "  Waterfall."  This  is  the  Niagara  cataract. 
A  stream  corresponding  to  the  Genesee  River,  flows  into  the 
unnamed  lake  from  the  south ;  and  also  from  the  south,  cor- 
responding to  the  Oswego  River,  another  stream  enters  the 
lake.  It  has  its  source  in  a  large  "  lac  des  irocois,"  which 
stands  for  all  the  small  lakes  of  Central  New  York. 

The  "  America "  of  Henrico  Hondio,  1631,  delineates  a 
singularly  swollen  St.  Lawrence,  with  several  tributaries  each 
having  its  source  in  a  lake.  None  of  these  lakes  bears  a  name, 
but  the  southwestern  branch  or  tributary  shows  two  lakes,  and 
above  the  stream  which  joins  them  are  the  words  "  Premier 
sault"  2  That  this  "  first  fall  "  among  the  sources  of  the  St. 
Lawrence,  is  a  hearsay  record  of  Niagara,  there  can  be  little 
doubt.  This  map  of  1631,  though  made  so  many  years  after 
Champlain  discovered  the  lake  that  bears  his  name,  and  after 
Hudson  sailed  up  the  river  that  bears  his  name,  shows  neither 
the  river  nor  the  lake,  but  does  show,  though  far  from  right, 
the  southern  extremity  of  Hudson's  Bay. 

Champlain's  map  of  1632  records  information  gained  by  him 
from  1614  to  1618.  Pie  had  visited  Georgian  Bay  in  1615, 
crossing  thence  by  Lake  Simcoe  and  the  River  Trent  to  Lake 
Ontario.  Pie  crossed  that  lake  near  its  eastern  end,  and  ad- 
vanced into  Central  New  York,  probably  to  Onondaga  Lake. 
In  view  of  this  personal  knowledge,  one  would  expect  greater 
accuracy  than  his  map  of  1632  shows.  It  is  in  fact  exceedingly 
crude.  Lake  Ontario,  styled  Lac  S.  Louis,  is  shown  with  some 
approximation  to  its  true  shape  and  position.  Lake  Huron 
("  Mcr  Douce  ")  is  shown  as  a  vast  body  of  water,  extending 
as  far  east  as  the  middle  of  Lake  Ontario  ;  south  of  it,  reaching 
like  a  river  west  of  Ontario,  is  an  island-dotted  stretch  of 
water,  receiving  two  large  rivers  from  the  south.  At  the  west- 
ern end  of  Ontario  is  marked  a  fall,  of  which  an  accompanying 
explanation  says:  "Waterfall,  very  high,  at  the  end  of  St. 

""America  iwviter  delincata,  and.  Henrico  Hondio,"  1631. 


6  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

Louis  fall  [sic:  lake],  where  several  sorts  of  fish  are  stunned 
in  their  descent."  This  is  Niagara.  The  residence  of  native 
tribes  is  indicated,  but  nothing  on  this  famous  map  has  the 
accuracy  that  shows  personal  knowledge.  Its  distortions  are 
negative  proof  that  Champlain  did  not  visit  Lake  Erie  or  the 
Niagara  region. 

The  Hudson  and  Lake  Champlain  both  appear  on  De  Laet's 
map  of  1633.  The  same  map  shows  the  "  Lac  des  Yroquois," 
or  Ontario,  as  a  small  body  of  water,  while  to  the  westward 
lies  a  "  grand  lac,"  in  which  are  merged  all  the  other  of  the 
Great  Lakes  group.  But  here  is  no  hint  of  any  fall  in  the 
connecting  river. 

Bearing  date  1650,  the  "  North  America "  of  N.  Sanson 
d' Abbeville,  a  royal  geographer,  shows  the  St.  Lawrence  River 
somewhat  more  correctly  than  its  predecessors.  Ontario,  bear- 
ing also  the  name  "  L.  de  St.  Loys  "  [St.  Louis],  is  to  the 
northeast  of  an  unnamed  lake,  though  the  lands  to  the  north 
of  it  are  marked  "  N.  Neutre  "  (Neuter  nation)  and  those  to 
the  south  "  AT.  du  Chat  "  (Nation  of  the  Cat).  The  two  lakes 
are  joined  by  a  river,  but  no  indication  of  a  fall  is  given.  The 
Detroit,  Lake  Ste.  Clair  and  Lake  Huron  are  sketched,  with- 
out names ;  Superior  and  Michigan  are  very  erroneously  indi- 
cated, their  western  bounds  not  being  drawn  in  at  all. 

Sanson's  map  of  "  Canada  or  New  France,"  dated  1656, 
shows  a  marked  advance.  Connecting  Ontario,  or  "  Lac  de 
St.  Louys  "  with  the  lower  lake,  now  for  the  first  time  marked 
"  L.  Erie,  ou  de  Chat,"  is  a  river  much  too  long,  but  broken 
by  a  fall  marked  "  Ongiara  sault  "  —  a  spelling  shortened  from 
the  earlier  "  Onguiaahra."  Here  then  is  a  map  published  in 
Paris  by  the  official  map-maker  of  the  kingdom,  13  years  before 
La  Salle  came  into  our  region,  which  located  and  named  the 
great  fall  he  is  sometimes  said  to  have  discovered.  The  same 
map  shows  the  Genesee  River,  the  small  lakes  of  Central  New 
York,  and  many  other  details  not  set  down  on  earlier  maps. 
The  modern  spelling  of  "  Niagara  "  is  first  noted  in  a  memoir 
of  La  Chesnaye,  1676;  and  in  printed  books,  in  Hennepin's 
"  Lnnixianc"  of  1683. 

The  detail   of  the  Lower  Lakes  and  Niagara  region  is  for 


EARLY  KNOWLEDGE  OF  THE  NIAGARA          7 

the  first  time  shown  with  approximate  accuracy  in  Galinee's 
map  of  1670.  It  gives  the  St.  Lawrence  and  Ottawa  River 
routes  and  the  lake  shores  along  which  Galinee  and  his  com- 
panions passed  in  1669-70.  It  is  a  sketch  map,  and  such 
reproductions  as  have  been  made  are  in  facsimile,3  without  the 
usual  niceties  and  adornments  of  the  engraver.  It  has  the 
singular  feature  of  presenting  the  region  mapped  as  though 
viewed  from  the  north,  so  that,  to  read  most  of  its  many  in- 
scriptions, it  must  be  laid  before  the  student  with  the  south 
at  the  top.  The  outlines  of  the  lakes,  distances,  etc.,  lack 
the  accuracy  of  the  surveyor,  although  Galinee  had  some  repute 
as  a  geographer.  But  its  inaccuracies  are  more  than  offset 
by  its  fullness  of  record.  Numerous  data  are  given  along  the 
south  shore  of  Ontario.  The  Gcnesee  River  is  indicated,  though 
carried  inland  but  a  short  distance.  Several  villages  in  the 
Seneca  country  are  located,  and  a  "  fo7itaine  dc  bitume  " — the 
earliest  indication,  on  a  map,  of  the  oil  and  gas  phenomena. 
The  Niagara,  much  too  long,  has  the  cataract  marked :  "  Fall 
which  descends,  by  report  of  the  natives,  more  than  200  feet." 
Galinee  does  not  claim  to  have  seen  it,  and  the  drawing  of  the 
upper  river,  in  which  no  islands  are  shown,  and  of  the  eastern 
end  of  Lake  Erie,  which  is  wholly  without  description,  is 
further  proof,  were  any  needed,  that  he  did  not  explore  the 
region.  His  route  into  Lake  Erie,  by  the  Grand  River,  is 
shown.  Long  Point,  vastly  exaggerated,  is  called  "  PrcsqiC 
Ixle  dc  Lac  D'Eric,"  and  its  bay  is  the  "  Petit  lac  d'eric."  In 
the  middle  of  the  lake  he  very  honestly  writes :  "  I  show  only 
what  I  have  seen  until  I  see  the  rest."  The  south  shore  is  not 
drawn  at  all. 

Another  great  advance  is  found  in  Coronclli's  map  of  the 
western  part  of  Canada  or  New  France,  published  at  Paris 
in  1688.  Here  we  have  the  whole  Great  Lakes  system,  shown 
with  considerable  accuracy  and  much  notation.  Evidently  all 
the  known  designations  of  all  the  lakes  are  here  recorded.  One 
is  entitled:  "Lac  Frontcnac,  on  Ontario  ct  Skaniadorio  on 
St.  Louis."  Our  more  southerly  lake  appears  as  "  Lac  Eric 
on  Tciocharontiong  ct  Lac  dc  Canty  ct  du  Chat."  A  note 

3  Except  in  Faillon,  which  has  a  redrawn  and  engraved  reproduction. 


8  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

adds :  "  It  empties  into  Lake  Frontenac."  Niagara  Fall  is 
shown,  "  100  tois  en  perpendiculaires,"  i.e.,  640  feet  —  which 
somewhat  excuses  the  subsequent  exaggerations  of  La  Salle, 
Hennepin  and  La  Hontan.  Forts  Frontenac  and  Conty  are 
shown,  the  latter  where  Fort  Niagara  stands  to-day.  On  the 
south  shore  of  Lake  Ontario,  say  40  miles  east  of  the  Niagara, 
is  "  Cap  Enrage."  A  small  unnamed  stream  enters  Lake  Erie 
at  about  the  confluence  of  Eighteen  Mile  Creek. 

Coronelli's  "  L'Amerique  septentrionale,"  etc.,  Paris,  1689, 
shows  the  Great  Lakes  on  a  smaller  scale  and  with  less  detail 
than  in  the  preceding.  The  lower  Ohio  is  shown,  its  conjec- 
tured middle  course  by  dotted  lines ;  but  nothing  is  indicated 
of  its  head  waters  or  the  Chautauqua  or  Presqu'  lie  portages. 

Coronelli's  "  Partie  orientale  du  Canada  "  (eastern  part  of 
Canada),  etc.,  Paris,  1689,  includes  the  eastern  end  of  Lake 
Erie,  and  the  Niagara.  The  fall  is  shown ;  and  the  river  above 
mentioned  (map  of  1688),  flowing  from  the  southeast,  is  shown 
somewhat  longer  than  on  the  earlier  map,  but  still  unnamed. 
All  of  the  Coronelli  maps  give  many  Indian  locations  in  the 
region  around  Lake  Ontario. 

Most  of  the  maps  of  Guillaume  Delisle,  though  of  later  date 
than  Coronelli's,  do  not  show  our  region  so  well  as  do  the 
Italian's.  Delisle's  "  North  America,"  published  at  Paris  in 
1700,  locates  Forts  Niagara  and  Frontenac,  but  lacks,  in  our 
region,  numerous  details  of  the  earlier  maps. 

A  Delisle  map  of  1703  ("  Mexique,"  etc.)  shows  the  lower 
portion  of  the  lakes,  with  "  F.  Denonville"  for  Fort  Niagara; 
and  skirting  the  south  shore  of  Lake  Erie  runs  an  extension  of 
the  Wabash  "  otherwise  named  Ohio  or  beautiful  river."  Chau- 
tauqua Lake  is  not  shown,  or  any  correct  delineation  of  the 
two  great  sources  of  the  Ohio.  Another  Delisle  map  of  1703, 
the  "  Canada"  has  the  Ohio  system  wrong,  as  in  the  foregoing; 
marks  a  town  of  Niagara  on  the  west  side  of  the  Niagara  River 
opposite  Fort  Denonville,  and  indicates  the  falls.  In  Lake 
Erie  the  present  Long  Point  is  named  East  Point  ("  Pte.  de 
I'Est  ").  The  Central  New  York  lakes  are  shown,  and  several 
Indian  villages  in  the  region  are  located,  one  of  them,  Tcgaron- 
dies,  on  the  south  shore  of  Lake  Ontario.  On  the  north  shore 


EARLY  KNOWLEDGE  OF  THE  NIAGARA          9 

are  Fort  Frontenac,  "  Kinte,"  Gandaracquc,  Gandastiago,  and 
Teiaiagon,  the  latter  approximating  the  present  Toronto. 

De  Fcr's  map  of  Canada,  published  in  Paris  in  1702,  indi- 
cates Fort  Niagara  as  on  the  west  side  of  the  river;  marks  the 
falls  "  of  a  half  league  "  —  in  width ;  and  on  the  south  shore 
of  the  lower  lake,  which  is  blunderingly  named  "  Lac  Frie," 
is  an  unnamed  fort.  At  so  early  a  date  no  white  man's  con- 
struction had  been  made  there. 

Delisle's  "  Map  of  Louisiana  and  of  the  course  of  the  Missis- 
sippi," published  at  Paris  in  1718,  shows  nothing  essentially 
new  for  the  Lower  Lakes  region.  Fort  Denonville  is  shown, 
although  it  had  not  existed  for  30  years.  The  falls  are  marked 
"  600  feet  high  ";  and  in  Lake  Eric  "  La  Grand  Pointe  "  indi- 
cates Long  Point.  No  data  are  given  for  the  east  and  south 
shores  of  Lake  Erie  except  the  western  end  where  a  deep  bay 
with  three  islands  is  marked  "  Lac  Sandouske.'"  The  Ohio  is 
still  made  a  tributary  of  the  W abash,  with  its  sources  to  the 
east  of  Lake  Erie. 

In  1719,  Herman  Moll's  map,  "  A  new  and  correct  map  of  the 
whole  world,"  shows  the  Great  Lakes,  one  named  "  Errie," 
another  "  Frontignac,"  and  between  them  "  the  great  Fall  of 
Niagara."  His  "  North  America "  of  the  same  date,  puts 
Fort  Denonville  on  the  west  side  of  the  Niagara  River;  and 
into  the  southeast  corner  of  Lake  Erie  —  truly  enough  a 
"  corner,"  as  engraved  —  runs  the  considerable  river  Conde, 
rising  in  a  lake  far  to  the  southeast,  in  Virginia.  This  mys- 
terious Conde  figures  on  many  maps,  but  not  on  those  of  the 
French  geographers.  Moll's  "  America  "  of  1720  shows  this 
river;  has  "Fort  Deonville  "  (sic)  misplaced  as  before,  and 
lakes  "  Frontenac  "  and  "  Irrie  "  extremely  ill  drawn. 

The  maps  of  the  French  engineer  Jacques  Nicolas  Bcllin  mark 
further  progress  towards  a  correct  showing  of  our  region.  His 
"  Louisiana,  course  of  the  Mississippi  and  neighboring  coun- 
tries," dated  Paris,  1744,  shows  the  fort  and  fall  of  Niagara: 
east  of  the  fort  "  Ic  grand  marais"  or  great  swamp;  and 
among  other  small  streams  emptying  into  Ontario  from  the 
south,  is  "  It.  aux  Bcufs  "  or  Oak  Orchard  Creek.  The 
Genesee  River  is  fairly  well  shown,  but  not  named.  Long 


10       AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

Point  in  Lake  Eric  is  for  the  first  time  so  named.  Also,  for 
the  first  time,  the  Ohio  is  drawn  with  something  like  accuracy, 
receiving  the  Wabash  as  a  tributary;  and  having  one  of  its 
sources  in  "  Lac  HiatacJconn,"  near  Lake  Erie  —  a  clear  indi- 
cation of  Lake  Chautauqua,  which  appears  to  have  been  first 
made  known  by  the  expedition  of  1739. 

A  year  later,  Bellin's  map  of  "  The  Western  part  of  New 
France  "  shows  Chautauqua  Lake  without  any  name,  but  marks 
the  portage  between  it  and  Lake  Erie.  Three  small  streams 
empty  into  the  eastern  end  of  this  lake,  the  most  northerly  one 
being  perhaps  the  first  delineation  which  may  be  regarded  as 
Buffalo  Creek.  Along  the  unnamed  Genesee  River  is  printed: 
"  River  unknown  to  the  geographers,  full  of  falls  and  cas- 
cades." East  of  this  river  in  the  country  of  the  Senecas,  is 
marked  "  Fontaine  Brulante,"  or  burning  spring,  probably  the 
first  cartographical  indication  of  our  gas  wells  since  Galinee 
in  1670.  Numerous  Indian  towns  are  designated  on  the  Upper 
Allegheny ;  and  Le  Boeuf  River  and  Lake  are  shown. 

Ten  years  later,  another  of  Bellin's  maps  shows  the  in- 
creased knowledge  that  had  come  from  French  incursions  into 
and  occupancy  of  this  region.  The  Niagara  portage  is  indi- 
cated. The  Genesee  is  marked  with  its  early  name,  Casconchia- 
gon,  and  "  Lac  Tjadakoin  "  is  an  approach  to  our  "  Chautau- 
qua." The  valley  of  the  Upper  Allegheny  is  full  of  data.  On 
Lake  Erie,  the  contour  of  which  is  considerably  corrected,  now 
appear  Presqu'  Isle  peninsula  and  fort;  but  across  the  lake 
Long  Point  has  once  more  become  "  Grande  Pointe" 

Numerous  other  maps  there  are  that  show  the  Lower  Lakes 
and  upper  Ohio  regions  under  the  French.  One  of  them,  pub- 
lished in  the  year  of  the  Conquest  at  Augsburg  (with  French 
text)  by  Matthieu  Albert  Lotter,  presents  some  features  of 
interest;  but  for  the  student  who  would  know  this  region  as  it 
was  known  by  the  French  in  the  last  years  of  their  control,  there 
is  nothing  better  than  the  later  maps  of  Bellin,  save  one,  and 
that  the  very  useful,  epoch-making,  one  may  quite  say  famous 
map,  published  in  Philadelphia  in  1755  by  Lewis  Evans. 

In  1755  there  was  printed  and  published  by  Benjamin  Frank- 


EARLY  KNOWLEDGE  OF  THE  NIAGARA         11 

lin  and  L).  Hall,  in  Philadelphia,  a  quarto  pamphlet  entitled, 
"  Geographical,  Historical,  Philosophical,  and  Mechanical 
Essays.  The  first,  containing  an  analysis  of  a  general  Map 
of  the  Middle  British  Colonies  in  America,"  etc.  The  map 
accompanying,  about  26  hy  19  inches,  shows  the  Middle  British 
Colonies  and  a  part  of  New  France.  The  work  —  map  and 
pamphlet  —  was  by  Lewis  Evans,  the  first  American  who  won 
distinction  as  a  map-maker.  Ten  different  editions  of  this 
famous  map  were  published  between  1755  and  1807,  with  none 
of  which  Evans  had  anything  to  do.  He  died,  poor,  in  1756 ; 
but  his  map,  although  criticised,  had  such  great  excellencies 
that  it  was  appropriated,  re-engraved  and  piratically  copied, 
by  numerous  British  publishers.  Evans'  work  is  the  basis  of 
Kitchin's  map  of  1756  ("  The  Middle  British  Colonies  in 
America,"  etc.)  ;  of  the  Jcfferys  map  of  1758;  and  of  others 
issued  before,  during  and  after  the  Revolution,  notably  that 
by  Thomas  Pownall,  in  1776.4 

It  shows  the  Lower  Lakes  and  Niagara  region  better  than 
any  other  map,  up  to  that  time.  Correctly  located,  on  the 
east  side  of  the  Niagara,  are  Fort  Niagara,  and  the  swamp 
to  the  cast  of  it,  the  lower  rapids,  and  the  "  Portage,  8  M." 
around  the  Falls.  Near  the  upper  end  of  the  portage  is 
marked :  "  Fishing  battery."  The  current  of  the  Niagara 
opposite  the  present  city  of  Buffalo  is  indicated  as  "  swift." 
On  the  west  side  of  the  river,  near  Lake  Ontario,  it  is  marked: 
"  Gentle."  "  The  great  rock  "  which  Henncpin  mentions,  is 
indicated  on  the  west  side  at  present  Queenston;  and  the  cata- 
ract is  named  Oxniagara,  the  u  x  "  being  a  character  to  repre- 
sent the  guttural  "  gh  "  or  "  ch,"  often  shown  in  early  printed 
books  by  a  device  somewhat  like  the  figure  8.  Chautauqua 
Lake  and  portage  are  marked  "  Jadaxquc,"  but  the  distance 
is  erroneously  given  as  J20  miles.  Presqu'  Isle  portage,  shown 
with  approximate  accuracy,  is  indicated  as  15  miles.  Western 
New  York  and  the  territory  north  and  south  of  Lake  Erie 
abound  in  data  not  so  well  given  on  earlier  maps:  but  the 

4  For  an  account  of  the  fortunes  of  the  Evans  map  see  "  Lewis  Evans 
His  Map,"  etc.,  by  Henry  X.  Stevens,  London,  l!K)j. 


12 

region  between  the  Genesee  River  —  here  called  "  Kaskuxse  or 
L.  Seneca  "  —  and  Lake  Erie  is  a  blank,  with  only  a  suggestion 
of  Buffalo  River. 

Many  other  maps  might  be  mentioned  which  present  some 
feature  of  interest  in  our  region.  For  instance,  the  map  of 
Lake  Ontario  and  the  Iroquois  country  which  accompanies  the 
Jesuit  Relation  of  1664-65,  has  for  "  Niagara  "  the  unusual 
form  "  Ondiara."  The  map  which  accompanies  Hennepin's 
"  Louisiane,"  1683,  styles  our  Fort  Niagara  as  "  Fort  du 
Conty"  and  carries  Lake  Erie  or  "  Lac  du  Conty"  as  far 
south  as  Virginia.  The  map  in  La  Hontan's  "  Nouveaux 
Voyages,"  printed  at  The  Hague  in  1709,  shows  on  the  pres- 
ent site  of  Buffalo,  a  "  Fort  Suppose."  It  also  shows  the 
large  River  Conde,  entering  the  eastern  end  of  Lake  Erie  from 
the  southeast.  Herman  Moll,  in  his  map  above  noted,  may  have 
borrowed  this  mysterious  river  from  La  Hontan. 

The  exaggeration  of  the  height  of  Niagara  Falls  did  not 
begin  with  La  Salle  or  Hennepin,  but  as  stated  above,  is  to  be 
found  on  maps  antedating  the  latter's  work.  Long  after  the 
true  altitude  was  ascertained  and  published,  careless  or  igno- 
rant map-makers  continued  to  give  the  cataract  excessive 
height.  Even  as  late  as  1740,  or  about  that  date,  George  Will- 
dey's  large  folio  map  of  North  America,  made  and  published  in 
London,  has  the  legend :  "  Niagara  cataract,  it  falls  600 
feet."  3 

•r<  The  Evans'  map  has  "  Oxniagara,"  "Jadaxque,"  etc.,  the  "x"  being  a 
modification  of  a  character  used  by  early  writers  to  represent  an  Indian 
guttural.  Similarly,  a  character  like  a  figure  "8"  open  at  the  top  was 
employed.  In  the  few  cases  in  which  this  occurs  in  the  following  pages, 
the  "  8  "  is  used. 


CHAPTER  II 
BEGINNINGS 

FIRST  WHITE  MAN  IN  TUB:  NIAGARA  REGION  —  PROBABILITIES  RE- 
GARDING BRULK  AND  GRKNOLLE  —  FRANCISCAN  AND  JESUIT 
MISSIONS  —  DALLION,  BKEBEUF  AND  CHAUMONOT. 

THE  first  white  man  known  to  have  voyaged  on  any  of  the 
Great  Lakes  was  Champlain,  who  skirted  the  shore  of  Georgian 
Bay,  and  crossed  Lake  Ontario.  There  is  strong  probability, 
but  no  proof,  that  he  was  preceded  on  Lake  Ontario  by  his 
young  interpreter,  Etienne  Brule.  The  meager  records  which 
tell  of  this  man,  warrant  the  inference  that  Brule  crossed  On- 
tario, or  coasted  its  western  shores  before  Champlain  was  on 
its  waters;  and  that  he  saw  the  mouth  of  the  Niagara,  if  not 
the  falls,  which  Champlain  never  saw  nor  clearly  learned  of. 

No  adventurer  in  our  region  had  a  more  remarkable  career 
than  Brule.  But  little  of  it  is  known.  lie  was  with  Cham- 
plain  on  his  journey  to  the  Huron  country.  He  left  that 
explorer  in  September,  1615,  at  the  outlet  of  Lake  Simcoe  and 
went  on  a  most  perilous  mission  into  the  country  of  the  Andas- 
tcs,  allies  of  the  Ilurons,  to  enlist  them  against  the  Iroquois. 
The  Andastes  lived  on  the  headwaters  of  the  Susquehanna  and 
along  the  south  shore  of  Lake  Erie,  the  present  site  of  Buffalo 
being  generally  included  within  the  bounds  of  their  territory. 

Brule  appears  to  have  come  down  the  valley  of  the  Ilumber, 
early  in  September  of  the  year  named.  If  that  was  his  route, 
he  stood  on  the  shore  of  Lake  Ontario  before  any  other  white 
man  had  looked  upon  its  waters,  and  he  made  his  discovery  at 
the  mouth  of  the  Ilumber,  the  present  site  of  Toronto.  Later 
that  same  month  Champlain  crossed  the  lake  near  the  eastern 
end,  his  exact  route  being  matter  of  disagreement  among  those 
who  seek  to  make  clear  his  writings.  Champlain  is  also  our 
principal  source  of  information  regarding  Brule,  who  appears 
to  have  crossed  Ontario,  or  skirted  its  western  shores,  to  the 
vicinity  of  the  Niagara.  From  this  point  he  gained  the  Sus- 


14  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

quehanna,  but  by  what  route  is  conjectural.  He  was  taken 
captive  by  Indians,  and  tortured,  but  survived,  escaped,  and 
rejoined  Champlain.  As  the  knowledge  of  the  country  gained 
in  his  wanderings  would  naturally  have  been  communicated  to 
Champlain,  and  as  that  explorer,  on  his  map  of  1632,  does  not 
show  Lake  Erie  or  indicate  Niagara  Falls,  the  inference  is 
warranted  that  Brule  did  not  see  either  the  lake  or  the 
cataract.1 

Resting  the  matter  wholly  upon  our  best  authority  —  the 
writings  of  Champlain  —  we  find  two  striking  facts,  which 
give  to  the  somewhat  uncertain  figure  of  this  French  interpreter 
a  sure  and  shining  place  in  the  annals  of  our  region: 

First.  Brule's  exploration  which  led  him  across  or  around 
the  western  end  of  Lake  Ontario,  and  through  Western  New 
York  more  than  five  years  before  the  Pilgrims  set  foot  on 
American  soil,  was  not  the  idea  of  his  great  employer,  but 
Brule's  own.  He  was  not  ordered,  but  had  sought  the  privilege 
of  the  expedition.  Parkman's  phrase,  "  Pioneer  of  pioneers," 
in  no  sense  applies  more  truly  to  him  than  in  connection  with 
the  history  of  the  region  here  under  study. 

Second.  It  was  Brule  who  took  back  to  the  Huron  mission 
word  of  the  Neuter  nation  in  the  Niagara  peninsula,  which  led 
to  the  first  visit  to  these  wilds  of  a  Christian  missionary  —  the 
Franciscan,  Joseph  de  la  Roche  Dallion.2 

It  was  in  October,  1626,  that  this  priest  set  out  from  the 

1  Original  sources  which  afford  some  knowledge  of  Brule  are  Champlain 
and  Sagard,  from  whom  Parkman  has  drawn.     The  reader  is  also  referred 
to  Benjamin  Suite's  paper,  "  Etienne  Brule,"  in  Trans.  Roy.  Soc.  Can.,  3d 
ser.  1908;  and  to  Consul  W.  Butterfield's  work,  "History  of  Brule's  Dis- 
coveries and  Explorations,"  Cleveland,  1898.     Obed  Edson   (Mafj.  of  Hist., 
Mch-Apr.,  1915)   concludes  that  Brule's  route  is  shown  by  the  dotted  line 
on  Champlain's  map,  1632.     See  Shafter's  "Champlain,"  III,  p.  208;  Win- 
sor's  "  Cartier,"  p.  117. 

2  Spelled  also  "  Daillon  "  or  "  d'Allion,"  the  latter  form  suggesting  origin 
from  the  name  of  a  place,  as  is  common  in  the  French.     Charlevoix  some- 
times wrongly  has  it,  "  de  Dallion."     I  have  followed  the  spelling  as  given 
in  the   priest's   own   signature   to   a   letter  to   a    friend   in    Paris,   dated    at 
"Tonachin    [Toanchain],   Huron  village,  this   18th  July,   1627,"   and   signed 
'Joseph  de  la  Koche  Dallion."     This  letter  is  the  chief  source  of  our  knowl- 
edge regarding  the  visit  to  the  Neuter  nation  in  1626-27. 


BEGINNINGS  15 

Franciscan  mission  in  the  Huron  country,  with  two  French 
companions,  Grenolle  and  Lavallee,  and  journeyed  by  Indian 
paths  six  days  through  the  forest,  apparently  skirting  the 
western  end  of  Lake  Ontario  and  coming  to  the  Niagara  at  or 
near  its  mouth.  Brule  had  "  told  wonders  "  of  the  Neuters  — 
a  statement  (in  Dallion's  narrative)  which  somewhat  indicates 
the  route  of  the  interpreter.  If  he  had  personal  experience 
with  the  Neuters,  on  his  journey  to  the  Susquehanna,  he  un- 
doubtedly saw  something  of  the  Niagara  and  mid-lake  region 
which  was  their  abode. 

Dallion  remained  among  the  Neuters  for  three  months,  mak- 
ing sojourn  at  several  of  their  villages.  lie  was  back  at  the 
Toanchain  mission  station  in  the  Huron  country  by  July,  and 
there  he  wrote  at  some  length  the  story  of  his  missionary  visit 
to  the  Neuters.  His  account,  in  a  letter  to  a  friend  in  Paris, 
is  the  earliest  document  known  relating  to  a  personal  experience 
in  the  Niagara  region.  He  tells  of  his  kind  reception  at  one 
village  after  another.  At  the  sixth  village  a  council  was  held, 
at  which  the  priest  told  the  assemblage,  "  that  I  came  on  behalf 
of  the  French,  to  contract  alliance  and  friendship  with  them, 
and  to  invite  them  to  come  to  trade.  .  .  .  They  accepted  all 
my  offers,  and  showed  me  that  they  were  very  agreeable.  .  .  . 
I  made  them  a  present  of  what  little  I  had,  as  little  knives  and 
other  trifles.  ...  In  return,  they  adopted  me,  as  they  say  — • 
that  is,  they  declared  me  a  citizen  and  child  of  the  country,  and 
gave  me  in  trust  —  mark  of  great  affection  —  to  Souharissen, 
who  was  my  father  and  host."  This  name,  or  title,  of  the 
worthy  savage,  is  the  first  designation  in  history  of  any  indi- 
vidual resident  in  our  region ;  and  the  simple  barter  between 
his  people  and  the  priest  was  for  this  region  the  beginning  of 
recorded  trade. 

Under  Souharissen's  sway  were  28  "  towns,  cities  and  vil- 
lages," besides  "  several  little  hamlets  of  seven  or  eight  cabins." 
Careful  students  of  the  episode  are  of  opinion  that  Dallion 
crossed  the  Niagara  and  visited  Neuter  towns  east  of  the  river, 
apparently  resting  that  conclusion  on  the  following  passages 
in  his  letter  above  quoted  from : 


16       AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

After  this  cordial  welcome  our  Frenchmen  returned,  and  I  re- 
mained, the  happiest  man  in  the  world,  hoping  to  do  something  there 
to  advance  God's  glory,  or  at  least  to  discover  the  means,  which 
would  be  no  small  thing,  and  to  endeavor  to  discover  the  mouth  of 
the  river  of  the  Hiroquois,  in  order  to  bring  them  to  trade.  .  .  . 

I  have  always  seen  them  constant  in  their  resolution  to  go  with 
at  least  four  canoes  to  the  trade,  if  I  would  guide  them,  the  whole 
difficulty  being  that  we  did  not  know  the  way.  Yroquet,  an  Indian 
known  in  those  countries,  who  had  come  there  with  20  of  his  men 
hunting  for  beaver,  and  who  took  fully  500,  would  never  give  us  any 
mark  to  know  the  mouth  of  the  river.  He  and  several  Hurons  as- 
sured us  well  that  it  was  only  10  days'  journey  to  the  trading-place; 
but  we  were  afraid  of  taking  one  river  for  another  and  losing  our  way 
or  dying  of  hunger  on  the  land.3 

It  is  a  perplexing  passage.  By  "  river  of  the  Hiroquois," 
or  Iroquois,  was  usually  meant  the  St.  Lawrence;  but  Dallion 
here  appears  to  allude  to  the  mouth  of  the  Niagara,  as  a  place 
of  trade ;  yet,  if  he  had  crossed  that  river,  one  is  at  a  loss  to 
understand  his  statement  that  "  Yroquet  [which  may  or  may 
not  mean,  an  Iroquois]  would  never  give  us  any  mark  to  know 
the  mouth  of  the  river." 

Disregarding  all  commentators,  who  are  sometimes  prone  to 
make  deductions  to  support  theories,  and  taking  for  guide 
Dallion's  own  story  —  the  only  known  original  "  source  "  in 
the  matter  —  one  is  warranted  in  saying  that  his  missionary 
journey  of  1626-27  apparently  brought  him  into  the  Niagara 
region.  It  is  idle  to  attempt  to  be  more  explicit. 

If  he  was  in  the  region,  one  may  say,  as  of  Brule  a  dozen 
years  before,  that  he  probably  saw  Niagara  Falls ;  but  if 
so,  it  is  more  remarkable  in  the  case  of  an  educated  priest, 
than  of  an  unlettered  forest  ranger,  that  he  did  not  mention 
them. 

3  Dallion's  letter  is  to  be  found  in  Sagard's  "  Histoire  du  Canada,"  Paris, 
1G3G,  and  in  I.e  Clercq's  "Premier  Etaulissement  de  la  Foy  dans  la  Xouvelle 
France,"  Paris,  1G91;  but  I.e  Clercq  omits  the  passages  relating  to  trade. 
One  modern  investigator,  Dr.  John  Gilmary  Shea,  concludes  that  the  above 
allusion  is  to  Niagara  River  and  the  route  through  Lake  Ontario;  and 
in  this  the  Very  Rev.  W.  R.  Harris  evidently  coincides;  the  reader  is 
referred  to  his  "  History  of  Early  Missions  in  Western  Canada,"  Toronto, 
1893. 


BEGINNINGS  17 

The  mention  of  Grcnollc  and  Lavallee  again  brings  the  stu- 
dent to  the  borderland  of  the  unknown.  Since  they  were  sent 
with  the  priest  as  guides,  it  is  clear  they  were  not  merely 
engages  at  the  mission,  but  ioya.gcu.rs  who  had  some  knowledge 
of  the  land  into  which  they  were  going.  It  is  to  be  wished 
more  light  could  be  focused  on  Grcnolle,  who  plainly  was  a  man 
of  uncommon  resolution  and  energy.  According  to  Sagard, 
it  was  he  who  had  accompanied  Brule  to  Lake  Superior,  and 
brought  back  the  first  "  lingot  "  of  red  copper.  Such  hardy, 
half-savage  forest  rangers  as  he  no  doubt  made  up  the  van- 
guard of  white  man's  advance  into  the  Niagara  peninsula,  the 
land  of  the  Neuters.  A  few  names  we  know ;  of  many  others  we 
have  no  trace.  "  Many  of  our  Frenchmen,"  says  the  Jesuit 
Relation  of  16-10-41,  "  have  in  the  past  made  journeys  in  this 
country  of  the  Neuter  nation  for  the  sake  of  reaping  profit 
and  advantage  from  furs  and  other  little  wares  that  one  might 
look  for.  But  we  have  no  knowledge  of  any  one  who  has  gone 
there  for  the  purpose  of  preaching  the  Gospel,  except  the  Rev. 
Father  Joseph  de  la  Roche  Dallion,  a  Recollect." 

The  priest  recites  many  acts  of  ill-usage  to  which  he  was 
subjected.  In  the  spring  of  1627,  Grenolle,  and  probably 
others,  came  to  him,  and  escorted  him  back  to  the  Huron  village, 
which  was  their  haven  in  the  wilderness.  Much  of  Dallion's 
difficulty  in  the  region  was  due  to  his  ignorance  of  the  lan- 
guage. He  himself  records  that  "  being  the  greater  part  of  the 
time  without  an  interpreter,  he  was  constrained  to  instruct 
those  whom  he  could,  rather  by  signs  than  by  word  of  mouth." 
That  such  efforts,  amidst  savage  conditions,  should  have  been 
well  nigh  barren  of  result,  calls  for  no  comment  here. 

The  historian  Sagard,  writing  prior  to  1636,  urged  that 
French  traders  be  sent  to  winter  among  the  Neuter  villages  ; 
but  we  find  no  record,  after  Dallion,  of  any  white  man's  pres- 
ence on  Lakes  Krie  or  Ontario,  or  on  the  Niagara,  until  Novem- 
ber, 164-0,  when  two  Jesuit  fathers  from  the  Huron  mission 
came  into  the  territory  where  Dallion  had  so  devotedly  labored, 
14-  years  before.  These  were  the  missionaries  Jean  dc  Brebcuf 
and  Joseph  Marie  Chaumonot.  With  their  visit  the  Niagara 
region  first  emerges  from  the  lui/y  uncertainty  of  Brule's  wan- 


18       AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

derings  and  even  of  Dallion's  mission,  and  its  chronicles  become 
definite. 

It  is  possible  that,  after  Champlain,  white  men  had  entered 
or  passed  through  Lake  Ontario,  earlier  than  we  know.  The 
Jesuit  Brebeuf,  in  his  Relation  of  1635,  explaining  why. he 
went  to  the  Huron  mission  by  the  Ottawa  River,  says :  "  It  is 
true  the  way  is  shorter  by  the  Saut  de  St.  Louys  and  the  Lake 
of  the  Hiroquois  [Ontario],  but  the  fear  of  enemies,  and  the 
few  conveniences  to  be  met  with,  cause  that  route  to  be  unfre- 
quented." 4  It  could  not  have  been  unfrequented  or  deserted, 
had  it  never  been  frequented,  or  used. 

The  mission  of  Brebeuf  and  Chaumonot  to  the  Niagara  in 
1640  has  been  much  and  beautifully  written  of  by  those  who 
have  emphasized  the  spiritual  and  psychological  aspects  of  the 
experience.  Stripped  of  these,  it  still  remains  a  considerable 
adventure. 

Setting  out  on  November  2d,  from  the  Huron  mission,  which 
has  been  determined  as  in  the  present  town  of  Medonte,  Ontario 
(near  Penetanguishene,  on  Georgian  Bay),  the  Jesuits  made 
their  way  to  the  banks  of  the  Niagara.  Their  probable  path 
has  been  determined,  as  through  the  present  towns  of  Beeton, 
Orangeville,  Georgetown,  Hamilton  and  St.  Catherines.  They 
passed  the  winter  in  the  Neuter  villages,  the  victims  of  much 
cruel  usage,  insult  and  even  bodily  harm.  In  February,  1641, 
they  returned  to  Huronia. 

Of  this  experience  Brebeuf  himself  wrote  but  little.  In  a 
letter  to  the  Rev.  Mutius  Vitelleschi  of  Rome,  he  summed  it  up 
with  singular  brevity:  "This  last  mission  [to  the  Neutrals] 
fell  to  the  portion  of  Father  Calmonotus  [Chaumonot]  and  me. 
We  spent  five  months  therein,  and  in  truth  we  suffered  much."  5 
Father  Chaumonot  does  not  appear  to  have  written  of  it  at 
all ;  self-effacement  characterized  them  both ;  but  Jerome  Lalle- 
ment,  completing  Le  Jeunc's  Relation  of  1640-41,  gives  details 
of  which  we  must  take  note. 

Having  told  of  the  desire  which  had  long  been  felt,  at  the 
Huron  mission,  to  carry  Christian  truths  into  the  villages  of 

*  In  the  original,  "  c-n  rT-tl  Ic  passage  desert." 
r>  The  original  is  in  Latin. 


BEGINNINGS  19 

the  Neutral  nation,  and  of  the  choice,  for  that  mission,  of 
Fathers  Brebeuf  and  Chaumonot,  Father  Lallement  writes  of 
the  journey,  four  days  south  or  southeast,  "  to  the  entrance 
of  the  so  celebrated  river  of  that  nation,  into  the  Ontario  or 
lake  of  St.  Louys."  The  Niagara  was  "celebrated"  in  1640! 
"  On  this  side  of  that  river,"  he  continues,  meaning  the  west 
side,  "  are  the  greater  part  of  the  villages  of  the  Neuter  nation. 
There  are  three  or  four  beyond,  ranging  from  east  to  west 
towards  the  nation  of  the  Cat,  or  Ericchronons."  The  east- 
ernmost village  of  the  Neutrals  is  supposed  to  have  been  in 
the  vicinity  of  Lockport.  Somewhere  near  the  eastern  end  of 
Lake  Erie  their  territory  was  joined  by  that  of  the  Erics 
(The  Cat  nation),  most  of  whose  people  dwelt  to  the  south  of 
Lake  Erie,  as  the  Neutrals  did  to  the  north.  Of  the  Niagara, 
Father  Lallement  continues : 

This  stream  or  river  is  that  through  which  our  great  lake  of  the 
Hurons,  or  fresh-water  sea,  empties;  it  flows  first  into  the  lake  of 
Erie,  or  of  the  nation  of  the  Cat,  and  at  the  end  of  that  lake,  it 
enters  into  the  territory  of  the  Neutral  nation,  and  takes  the  name 
of  Onguiaalira,  until  it  empties  into  the  Ontario  or  lake  of  Saint 
Louys,  whence  finally  emerges  the  river  that  passes  by  Quebek, 
called  the  St.  Lawrence.  So  that,  if  once  we  were  masters  of  the 
coast  of  the  sea  nearest  to  the  dwelling  of  the  Iroquois,  we  could 
ascend  by  the  river  St.  Lawrence  without  danger,  as  far  as  the 
Neutral  nation,  and  far  beyond,  with  considerable  saving  of  time 
and  trouble.8 

Here  we  have,  in  this  Relation  of  Lallement  to  his  Superior, 
the  first  recognition  and  statement  of  the  desirability  of  French 
control  over  the  region  of  the  Niagara  and  the  Lower  Lakes. 
All  unconsciously,  a  gentle  priest,  consecrated  to  the  service 
of  the  Prince  of  Peace,  had  struck  the  keynote  of  a  call  to 
strife  which  was  to  be  waged  for  more  than  a  century  to 
come. 

There  is  no  known  earlier  reference  to  the  Niagara,  by  name, 
than  the  passage  above  quoted.  Champlain,  as  early  as  1604, 

0  Lallement  to  the  Rev.  Father  Jacques  Dinet,  Provincial,  S.  J.,  cte.;  the 
narrative  is  dated  at  the  mission  of  St.  Mary's  in  the  Huron  country, 
May  19,  1C  11. 


20       AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

in  his  very  rare  book,  "  Des  San-cages"  had  alluded  to  the 
Great  Lakes  and  a  cataract,  his  statements  being  based  on 
reports  made  to  him  by  the  Indians  in  1603.  These  statements 
were  virtually  repeated  in  Lescarbot's  "  Histoire  de  la  Nouvelle 
France,"  published  in  1609;  but  neither  in  those  works,  nor  in 
the  narratives  of  the  Franciscan  missions  which  had  preceded 
the  Jesuits  in  the  region,  does  the  name  of  Niagara  occur. 
Lallement's  spelling  of  "  Onguiaahra  "  was  an  attempt  to  rep- 
resent the  Neuter  —  or  possibly  the  Huron  —  pronunciation  of 
the  river's  name.  A  simpler  spelling  of  approximately  the  same 
sounds  is  "  Ongiara."  The  river  and  fall  were  known  by  this 
name  until  La  Salle's  da}^.  Father  Hennepin's  "  Louisiane  " 
of  1683  is  the  earliest  work  in  which  we  have  the  modern  spelling 
of  "  Niagara,"  though  it  occurs  in  that  form  in  documents  at 
least  as  early  as  1676. 

Half  a  dozen  years  after  Lallement  another  Jesuit  makes 
interesting  allusion  to  the  cataract  without  using  the  name. 
This  is  Father  Paul  Ragueneau,  who  writes  in  the  Relation 
of  1647-48 : 

Almost  due  south  from  the  country  of  the  same  Neutral  nation,  we 
find  a  great  lake  nearly  200  leagues  in  circumference,  called  Erie; 
it  is  formed  by  the  discharge  of  the  Freshwater  Sea  [Huron],  and 
throws  itself  over  a  waterfall  of  frightful  height,  into  a  third  lake, 
named  Ontario,  which  we  call  Lake  Saint  Louys. 

Father  Lallement  wrote  at  graphic  length  of  the  Neuters, 
into  whose  vaguely-known  history  it  is  unnecessary  to  enter  in 
the  present  narrative.  It  may  be  noted,  however,  that  the 
name  of  Neuter,  or  Neutrals,  was  given  them  by  the  French, 
and  represents,  not  so  much  their  actual  relationship  towards 
neighboring  nations,  as  the  French  conception  of  their  atti- 
tude towards  the  irreconcilable  Iroquois  and  Hurons. 

And  here  it  may  be  noted  that  throughout  the  period  of  our 
narrative,  chiefly  in  the  earlier  years,  there  were  feuds  and 
raids,  hostile  expeditions,  or  friendly  alliances,  between  the 
tribes,  especially  between  the  Iroquois  and  the  less  warlike 
peoples  to  the  westward,  into  the  story  of  which  we  do  not 
enter.  Often  these  friendships  or  enmities  among  the  aborigines 


BEGINNINGS  21 

affected  their  attitude  towards  the  whites.     History,  always  a 

palimpsest,  is  never  more  so  than  in  its  annals  of  our  region, 
where,  beneath  the  records  of  our  race,  are  dimly  seen  those 
of  alien  early  folk,  whose  story  in  its  last  days  is  involved  with 
that  of  the  white  man,  and  in  its  more  ancient  periods  recedes 
through  imperfect  records,  through  legend  and  myth,  until  it 
grows  illegible  on  the  parchment  of  time,  lost  in  the  realm  of 
the  unknowable. 

Nearly  40  years  elapsed  after  Champlain  before  we  have 
clear  proof  of  a  white  man  on  Lake  Ontario.  It  was  July  30, 
1654,  when  Father  Simon  Lc  Moine,  bound  for  the  land  of 
the  Onondagas,  reached  in  his  canoe  "  the  entrance  of  a  great 
lake,  called  Ontario."  Keeping  close  to  its  eastern  shore,  cross- 
ing, when  the  water  was  quiet  enough,  from  headland  to  head- 
land of  its  great  bays,  skirting  the  shore  to  the  mouth  of  a  river 
-  perhaps  the  Salmon,  possibly  the  Oswego  —  he  gained  no 
personal  knowledge  of  the  vast  expanse  to  the  westward.  On 
.August  20th,  he  would  again  embark  for  the  return  journey, 
but  the  lake,  he  says,  was  in  a  fury.  The  next  day,  he  and  his 
companions  did  venture  forth  and  followed  the  coast  until,  on 
the  23d,  they  "  arrived  at  the  place  which  is  fixed  on  for  our 
house  and  a  French  settlement.  Beautiful  prairies,  good  fish- 
ing, a  resort  of  all  nations."  I  find  nothing  by  which  to  deter- 
mine this  place,  nor  did  any  French  settlement  result  from  his 
journey. 

Something  of  the  eastern  end  of  the  lake  was  seen  by  the 
priests  Joseph  Chaumonot  and  Claude  Dablon,  in  1655;  and 
by  the  Jesuit.  Father  Paul  Raguencau,  who,  leaving  the  Onon- 
daga  mission  in  March,  1  ()58,  found  so  much  ice  on  the  Lake 
Ontario  shore  that  his  men  had  to  cut  it  away  with  axes,  to 
make  a  passage  for  their  canoes.  Raguencau's  actual  experi- 
ence with  the  lake  was  even  less  than  Le  Moine's. 

In  the  Relations  of  these  and  other  early  missionaries,  bits 
of  information  about  Ontario  and  Krie,  usually  based  on 
Indian  report,  were  year  by  year  recorded.  In  a  Relation  for 
H)()!-(i5  is  given  with  some  detail,  an  account  of  the  Thousand 
Islands.  "  After  leaving  this  melancholy  abode,"  as  the  writer 
oddly  designates  it,  "  the  Lake  is  discovered  appearing  like 


22  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

unto  a  sea  without  islands  or  bounds,  where  barks  and  ships 
can  sail  in  all  safety." 

Governor  De  Courcelles,  in  1671,  with  a  view  to  lessening 
Iroquois  hostility,  came  with  a  flotilla  of  canoes  to  the  entrance 
of  our  lake,  paddled  up  to  the  Sulpician  mission  at  Rente, 
where  he  summoned  the  chieftains  to  a  council,  then  hastened 
back  to  the  securer  precincts  of  Quebec.  It  was  a  brave  enough 
show  of  power  and  dominion,  with  something  of  display  and 
ceremony  to  impress  the  red  man ;  but  he  did  in  fact  merely 
peep  into  Lake  Ontario;  the  splendid  panorama  of  its  far 
shores  he  never  saw. 


CHAPTER  III 

FRANCE  TAKES  POSSESSION 

DOMINION  OF  FRANCE  OVER  LAKE  ERIE  FORMALLY  PROCLAIMED  — 
DE  CASSON  AND  GALINEE  —  JOLIET  AND  PERE  —  THE  UNCER- 
TAIN ADVENTURES  OF  LA  SALLE  —  FRENCH  ENTRY  UPON  LAKE 
ONTARIO. 

THE  first  formal  effort  made  by  France  to  take  possession  of 
the  Niagara  and  Lake  Erie  region  was  in  1669.  The  course 
of  earlier  exploration,  as  of  earlier  missionary  effort,  had  lain 
more  to  the  north.  In  the  54>  years  that  had  elapsed  since 
Champlain  reached  Lake  Huron  by  the  Ottawa  River  route, 
many  had  followed  that  highway:  Nicolet  in  1634 ;  Jogucs  and 
Raymbault  in  1641 ;  Radisson  and  Grosseilliers  apparently  in 
1654  —  certainly  in  1656;  Father  Rene  Menard  in  1660; 
Father  Allouez  in  1665;  Marquette  in  1668;  and  Joliet  in 
1669.  These  had  all  reached  the  Lakes  by  the  Ottawa  and 
Lake  Nipissing  route.  It  was  an  arduous  journey,  but  the 
Algonquin  Indians  of  that  region  were  counted  as  friends  of  the 
French ;  the  Iroquois  to  the  south  were  enemies,  at  least  until 
1667. 

Knowledge  had  come  of  still  other  routes  to  the  Great  Lakes, 
as  yet  but  vaguely  known.  One  route  skirted  the  north  shore 
of  Lake  Ontario  to  Toronto,  thence  by  portages,  and  the  waters 
of  Lake  Simcoe  and  convenient  streams,  gained  the  shore  of 
Georgian  Bay  at  Penetanguishenc.  Still  another  was  by 
portage  from  the  head  of  Burlington  Bav,  at  the  extreme  west 
of  Lake  Ontario,  to  the  Grand  River,  down  which  canoes  readily 
made  their  way  to  Lake  Erie.  But  prior  to  1669,  neither 
trader  nor  priest  is  known  to  have  attempted  to  reach  the  West 
or  Southwest  by  the  Niagara  route. 

In  the  summer  of  this  year,  the  Sulpicians  of  Montreal  de- 
termined to  send  a  small  expedition  to  the  westward.  The  pre- 
ceding year  they  had  planted  a  mission  on  the  Bay  of  Quintc, 
where  Trouve  and  Fenelon  (half-brother  of  the  distinguished 


24       AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

abbe  of  that  name)  had  now  labored  for  a  year  among  the 
"  Iroquois  of  the  North,"  a  fugitive  band  of  Cayugas,  who, 
when  hard  pressed  by  their  ancient  foes,  the  Andastes,  had 
crossed  Lake  Ontario  and  settled  on  what  is  now  called  Wel- 
ler's  Bay. 

The  activity  of  the  Jesuits  may  have  spurred  the  Sulpicians 
to  extend  their  missionary  work.  The  Government  found  it  an 
auspicious  time  for  exploration,  and  not  only  dispatched  its 
own  emissaries  to  learn  of  the  reputed  copper  deposits  of  Lake 
Superior,  but  gave  permit  to  an  exploring  project  supported 
by  private  means.  This  and  an  expedition  organized  by  the 
Sulpicians  of  Montreal  were  induced  to  join  forces;  and  when 
the  consolidated  company  at  length  set  out  it  was  under  the 
command  and  guidance  of  three  men  destined  to  play  a  very 
important  part  in  our  regional  history. 

Three  more  striking  figures  were  not  to  be  found  in  all 
Canada.  One  of  them,  Fra^ois  Dollier  de  Casson,  had  been, 
in  his  native  France,  a  trained  soldier.  As  cavalry  captain 
under  the  great  Marshal  Turenne,  he  had  won  a  reputation 
for  bravery.  Tales  are  told  of  his  physical  strength:  with 
arms  extended,  he  could  hold  a  man,  seated,  in  each  hand. 
Like  the  saintly  Brebeuf,  he  comes  into  our  history  with  almost 
the  qualities  of  a  demi-god ;  and  though  the  lapse  of  centuries 
and  the  admiration  of  the  devout  may  have  magnified  these 
attributes,  clear  it  is  that  he  was  in  fact  an  extraordinary  man. 
Active  and  capable  as  a  soldier,  he  leaves  the  camp  for  the  altar, 
and  becomes  a  priest  of  the  Sulpician  order  in  the  Diocese  of 
Nantes.  In  1666  he  is  sent  to  Canada,  where  he  naturally 
seeks  and  shares  in  the  most  adventurous  and  arduous  service 
open  to  him.  lie  attends  Governor  de  Tracy  in  his  momentous 
expedition  against  the  Mohawks  —  momentous,  in  that  it  gives 
to  Canada,  for  nearly  20  years,  the  respite  of  some  measure 
of  peace  with  the  Iroquois.  We  next  find  Dollier  sent  as  chap- 
lain to  Fort  Ste.  Anne,  a  new  outpost  of  France  and  of  the 
church,  on  Isle  la  Mottc,  near  the  outlet  of  Lake  Champlain. 
lie  found  the  garrison  at  death's  door  with  disease,  and  by 
his  ministrations,  physical  and  spiritual,  brought  them  new 
life.  He  passed  the  winter  of  1668-69  among  the  Nipissings, 


FRANCE  TAKES  POSSESSION  25 

preaching,  baptising,  and  studying  the  language.  When  Quey- 
lus,  the  Sulpician  Superior  at  Montreal,  conceived  the  project 
of  establishing  a  mission  somewhere  in  the  Far  West,  among 
tribes  that  never  yet  had  received  the  gospel,  his  choice  natu- 
rally fell  on  the  stalwart  soldier-priest,  Dollier  de  Casson. 

With  him  was  Rene  de  Brehant  de  Galinee,  of  a  noble  Breton 
family ;  a  man  of  mathematical  and  astronomical  training,  with 
skill  in  map-making;  qualities  useful  in  an  exploring  expedi- 
tion. 

And  with  these  two,  Rene  Robert  Cavelicr,  de  La  Salle,  the 
young  adventurer  of  Rouen,  who,  after  a  brief  service  with 
the  Jesuits,  had  come  to  Canada,  and  acquired  the  seignory 
on  Montreal  Island  which  he  called  St.  Sulpice,  but  which  the 
world  will  always  know  as  La  Chine.  Eager  for  western  ex- 
ploration, he  sold  his  establishment,  put  the  proceeds  into  ca- 
noes and  equipment,  and  was  about  setting  out  by  himself, 
when  he  was  induced  to  join  forces  with  the  Sulpicians.  Who 
was  the  acknowledged  leader,  seems  to  be  nowhere  a  matter 
of  record.  Dollier  de  Casson  was  49 1  years  old,  Galinee's 
age  is  unknown,  that  of  La  Salle  26.  The  elder  man  may 
have  been  given  precedence ;  but  La  Salle  had  not  the  tempera- 
ment for  service  under  any  one. 

It  is  foreign  to  the  present  purpose  to  enter  into  the  detail 
of  their  expedition  except  as  relates  to  our  immediate  neigh- 
borhood ;  the  rest,  elsewhere  amply  recorded,  may  here  be 
briefly  summarized. 

Leaving  Montreal  on  July  6th,  with  nine  canoes  and  21 
men,  two  of  the  canoes  being  those  of  attendant  Senccas,  they 
skirted  the  eastern  and  southern  shores  of  Lake  Ontario,  as 
far  as  Irondequoit  Bay.  Thence,  pushing  southward  into  the 
Seneca  country  of  Central  New  York,  they  reached  the  village 
of  Boughton  Hill,  near  present  Victor.  They  hoped  here  to 
get  guide's  who  should  conduct  them  to  the  Ohio,  but  were  dis- 
appointed. The  Indians  dwelt  on  the  dangers  of  such  an  un- 
dertaking. More  than  a  month  the  Frenchmen  lingered  here 

i  Aeeordintr  to  TInvaites,  Jesuit  Relations,  I.,  3JO,  where  he  is  said  to 
have  been  born  "about  Ki-JO."  Dr.  Coyne,  editor  and  translator  of  Cialinee's 
Journal,  savs  Dollier  de  Casson  was  3:5  vears  old  at  the  date  of  the  journey. 


26       AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

—  an  interval  long  enough  for  the  restless  La  Salle  to  have 
made  considerable  journeys,  but  if  he  did  we  have  no  record 
of  them.  A  captive  was  burned  at  the  stake,  to  the  abhorrence 
of  the  more  humane  of  the  whites ;  and  finally,  despairing  of 
further  progress  to  the  southward,  they  returned  to  Ironde- 
quoit  and  continued  westward. 

It  is  to  Galinee's  journal  that  we  turn  for  the  story  of  the 
journey.  Although  few  exact  dates  are  given,  it  was  about  the 
middle  of  September  that  the  expedition  reached  the  mouth  of 
the  Niagara.  "  We  discovered  a  river,"  says  Galinee,  "  one 
eighth  of  a  league  wide  and  extremely  rapid,  which  is  the  out- 
let or  communication  from  Lake  Erie  to  Lake  Ontario.  The 
depth  of  this  stream  (for  it  is  properly  the  river  St.  Lawrence) 
is  prodigious  at  this  spot ;  for  at  the  very  shore  there  are  15 
or  16  fathoms  of  water,  which  fact  we  proved  by  dropping  our 
line." 

They  were  the  first  Europeans  known  to  have  reached  the 
Niagara  by  Lake  Ontario ;  and  this  is  the  first  description  per- 
taining to  the  river  by  any  one  known  to  have  reached  it.  It 
is  the  first  of  which  we  can  say,  "  This  man  saw  what  he  wrote 
of."  The  earlier  accounts  by  the  Jesuits  might  have  been 
written  from  hearsay ;  but  Galinee,  Dollier  de  Casson  and  La 
Salle  crossed  the  river  at  its  mouth,  and  Galinee  clearly  re- 
corded it. 

He  is  equally  clear  about  what  he  did  not  see.  The  In- 
dians told  them  of  the  great  cataract,  which  was  "  higher  than 
the  tallest  pine  trees ;  that  is,  about  200  feet.  In  fact,  we 
heard  it  from  where  we  were."  But,  he  adds,  "  our  desire 
to  go  on  to  our  little  village  called  Ganastogue  Sonontoua 
Outinaoutoua  prevented  our  going  to  sec  that  wonder."  He 
adds  other  descriptive  statements,  but  leaves  it  plain  that  the 
expedition  continued  westward  along  the  lake  shore,  with  no 
detour  whatever  up  the  Niagara. 

They  passed  up  Burlington  Bay,  and  leaving  it  near  the 
present  city  of  Hamilton  pushed  on  by  Indian  path  towards 
the  Grand  River.  On  September  24th,  plodding  through 
swamp  and  forest,  they  were  greatly  surprised  to  meet  Joliet, 
Pere  and  their  men,  coming  eastward.  Joliet  had  been  sent 


FRANCE  TAKES  POSSESSION  27 

by  Governor  Courcelles  to  learn  the  truth  about  reported  cop- 
per deposits  on  Lake  Superior.  Going  thither  by  the  Ottawa 
route,  he  had  failed  to  find  the  copper,  and  now,  under  Indian 
guidance,  was  following  a  route  no  white  man  had  ever  taken. 
He  had  come  down  Lake  Huron,  through  the  rivers  then  un- 
named, which  we  know  as  St.  Clair  and  Detroit,  and  had  skirted 
the  north  shore  of  Erie  to  the  mouth  of  the  Grand  River,  up 
which  he  had  traveled. 

Joliet  is  the  first  white  man  known  to  have  passed  through 
any  part  of  Lake  Eric.  That  lake,  unlike  all  the  others,  was 
"  discovered  "  from  the  westward.  Had  he  continued  a  day 
or  so  longer  on  its  waters  he  would  have  reached  the  Niagara 
and  would  have  had  the  glory  of  adding  the  great  cataract 
to  the  possessions  of  his  King.  His  own  name,  too,  would 
have  belonged  to  the  region  even  more  certainly  than  it  does 
to  the  Mississippi.  Fame  coquettes  with  the  adventurer,  whom 
she  may  crown,  or  forget.  Never  was  the  uncertainty  of  her 
favor  more  strikingly  shown  than  in  the  case  of  these  two 
young  men,  Joliet  and  La  Salle,  who  meet  in  the  Beverley 
swamp  of  Canada. 

The  result  of  that  meeting  was  that  La  Salle  parted  com- 
pany with  the  Sulpicians.  Galinee  gives  details,  most  of  which 
we  must  pass  over.  "  M.  de  la  Salic,  having  gone  hunting, 
brought  back  a  high  fever  which  pulled  him  down  a  great 
deal  in  a  few  days.  Some  say  it  was  at  the  sight  of  three  large 
rattlesnakes  he  found  in  his  path  whilst  climbing  a  rock  that 
the  fever  seized  him,"  and  the  writer  indulges  in  a  disserta- 
tion on  the  frightful  nature  of  rattlesnakes,  leaving  the  reader 
with  a  suspicion  that  he  did  not  wholly  attribute  La  Salle's 
course  to  this  cause.2  At  any  rate,  on  September  30th,  they 
parted,  apparently  in  friendly  fashion,  and  after  Mass  was 
said,  Father  Dollier  administering  the  Sacraments,  La  Salie, 

-  Brodhead,  in  his  usually  accurate  "  History  of  the  State  of  Xew  York," 
says  that  "after  observing  the  Falls  of  Niagara,  La  Salle  was  seized  with  a 
violent  fever,  which  obliged  him  to  return  to  Montreal"  (IT,  1(53),  a  state- 
ment not  substantiated  by  any  known  authority.  Galinee's  Journal  clearly 
slates  that  the  party  of  which  I. a  Salle  was  a  member  in  Hifi'l  crossed  the 
Niagara  at  its  mouth  but  did  not  po  to  view  the  falls.  Jared  Sparks'  life 
of  La  Salle  makes  no  mention  of  this  expedition  of  1669. 


28       AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

Joliet  and  their  retinue  took  the  path  to  Burlington  Bay; 
Dollier  with  seven  other  Frenchmen,  one  Dutchman  and  de  Cas- 
son,  Galinee  and  several  Indians,  passed  down  the  Grand  River, 
and  embarked  on  Lake  Erie.  In  the  meeting  with  Joliet  they 
had  learned  things  w7hich  upset  their  plans.  The  original  pur- 
pose would  have  carried  them  to  tribes  already  reached  by 
Jesuit  missionaries ;  but  Joliet  had  told  them  of  the  Potta- 
watamies,  to  whom  no  missionary  had  yet  gone.  Their  zeal 
kindled  for  this  work  and  they  now  undertook  to  reach  these 
people,  following  such  directions  as  Joliet  had  given.  The 
lateness  of  the  season  compelling  them  to  go  into  winter  quar- 
ters, they  built  a  shelter  that  served  as  dwelling,  as  chapel, 
and  as  storehouse,  the  site  of  which  may  be  seen  to  this  day ; 3 
and  they  erected  a  cross,  placed  the  royal  arms  at  its  foot, 
and  took  formal  possession  of  the  Lake  Erie  country  in  the 
name  of  Louis  the  Magnificent.  The  Act  of  taking  possession, 
dated  October,  1669,  is  signed  by  Fran£ois  Dollier  and  De 
Galinee,  respectively  priest  and  deacon,  the  former  for  the 
Diocese  of  Nantes,  the  latter  of  the  Diocese  of  Rennes.  Joliet 
in  his  passage  is  not  known  to  have  tarried  for  any  ceremony. 
To  these  two  stalwart  sons  of  Brittany,  therefore,  belongs 
precedence  in  asserting  the  sway  of  the  white  man  over  this 
region.  The  document  runs  as  follows : 

We  the  undersigned,  certify  that  we  have  seen,  on  the  lands  of  the 
lake  named  Erie,  the  arms  of  the  King  of  France  attached  to  the 
foot  of  a  cross,  with  this  inscription:  "  The  year  of  salvation  1669, 
Clement  IX.  being  seated  in  the  chair  of  St.  Peter,  Louis  XIV. 
reigning  in  France,  Monsieur  de  Courcelles  being  Governor  of  New 
France,  and  Monsieur  Talon  being  Intendent  therein  for  the  King, 
there  arrived  in  this  place  two  missionaries  of  the  Seminary  of 
Montreal,  accompanied  by  seven  other  Frenchmen,  who  the  first  of 
all  P'uropean  people  have  wintered  on  this  lake,  of  which  they  have 
taken  possession  in  the  name  of  their  King,  as  of  an  unoccupied 
territory,  by  affixing  his  arms  which  they  have  attached  here  to  the 
foot  of  this  cross.  In  testimony  whereof  we  have  signed  the  present 
certificate. 

s  The  exact  spot  was  identified  in  Aupust,  1900,  at  a  meeting1  of  the 
Norfolk  (Ont.)  Historieul  Society.  See  Ontario  Historical  Society  "Papers 
and  Records,"  IV,  XXV. 


FRANCE  TAKES  POSSESSION  29 

Here  they  abode  until  March.  On  the  23rd  of  that  month, 
1670,  being  Passion  Sunday,  says  Galinee,  "  we  all  went  to  the 
lake  shore  to  make  and  plant  a  cross  in  memory  of  so  long  a 
sojourn  of  Frenchmen  as  ours  had  been."  4 

With  Joliet,  when  he  set  out  from  Montreal,  was  the  Sieur 
Jean  Pere;  and  he  was  apparently  with  him  in  the  return  jour- 
ney ;  for  Galinee,  describing  the  meeting  of  the  two  expeditions 
west  of  Lake  Ontario,  speaks  of  "  two  Frenchmen  .  .  .  who 
were  on  their  way  from  the  Ottawas."  If  Pere  was  Joliet's 
companion  through  Lake  Erie  to  the  Grand  River,  he  should 
have  place  in  our  narrative,  no  less  than  Joliet;  but  he  is  at 
best  a  shadowy  figure.  Even  the  name,  sometimes  Pere,  some- 
times Pere,  and  sometimes  Per  ray,  is,  in  a  measure,  conjec- 
tural, and  has  led  to  confusion  with  Nicholas  Perrot,  and  even 
Francois  Marie  Perrot,  both  well  defined  figures.  This  Pere, 
who  is  credited  with  the  discover v  of  a  copper  mine  on  Lake 
Superior,  apparently  returned  to  Montreal  in  1670.  The 
next  trace  of  him  is  in  1677,  when  he  is  with  La  Salic  at  Fort 
Frontenac.  In  November,  1679,  Frontenac  wrote  to  the  King 
that  Governor  Andros  at  New  York  "  has  retained  there,  and 
even  well  treated,  a  man  named  Pere,  and  others  who  have 
been  alienated  from  Sieur  dc  la  Salle,  with  the  design  to  em- 
ploy and  send  them  among  the  Outawas,  to  open  a  trade  with 
them."  The  Intendant,  Duchesneau,  wrote  to  Seignelay  that 
"  a  man  named  Pere,  having  resolved  to  range  the  woods,  went 
to  Orange  to  confer  with  the  English,  and  to  carry  his  beavers 
there,  in  order  to  obtain  some  wampum  beads  to  return  and 
trade  with  the  Outawacs ;  that  he  was  arrested  by  the  governor 
of  that  place,  and  sent  to  Major  Andros,  Governor  General, 
whose  residence  is  at  Manhatte ;  that  his  plan  was  to  propose 
to  bring  to  him  all  the  courcitrs  dc  bois  with  their  peltries." 
So  bold  a  plan  of  diverting  the  fur  trade  evidently  failed,  for 
Pere  was  sent  to  London  and  held  a  prisoner  for  eighteen 
months."  One  suspects  him  to  have  been  the  "  Mons.  La 

•*  The  scene  of  this  ceremony  was  near  the  harbor  entrance  of  Port 
Dover.  Some  memorial  stone  or  tablet  should  be  set  lip  in  the  vicinity,  and 
the  site  of  the  priest-/  loda'iiiLr  also  marked. 

••  N".  Y.  Col.  Does.,  Ill,  17!). 


30  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

Parre "  whom  Dongan  sent  to  Canada,  September  8,  1687, 
"  with  an  answer  to  the  French  Governor's  angry  letter." 

On  Franquelin's  map  of  1688  the  present  Moose  River  of 
Hudson's  Bay  is  named  Pere.  The  geographer  Bellin  says  it 
was  so  named  for  its  discoverer.  While  these  scattered  facts 
indicate  a  man  of  varied  adventures  and  exceptional  activi- 
ties, the}'  do  not  clearly  establish  his  place  in  our  history ;  but 
that  he  is  entitled  to  some  place  in  it,  is  probable,  from  his  ap- 
parent, association  with  Joliet  and  La  Salle  in  1669.  He  and 
Joliet  may  indeed  have  accompanied  La  Salle  back  to  the 
Niagara  after  parting  with  the  Sulpicians ;  and  these  three 
worthies  may  have  entered  the  Niagara  and  visited  the  Falls, 
making  then  and  there  the  actual  "  discovery  "  of  the  cataract. 
If  they  took  the  south  shore  route  through  Lake  Ontario, 
with  which  La  Salle  was  familiar,  they  all  saw  the  Niagara. 
It  was  not  Joliet's  fear  of  the  Iroquois,  but  his  Indian  guide's 
fear  of  the  Andastes,  the  tribe  at  the  east  and  south  of  Lake 
Erie,  which  had  kept  him  from  coming  on  through  the  lake. 

If,  on  the  other  hand,  Joliet  and  Pere  followed  the  north 
shore,  what  became  of  La  Salle?  His  movements,  from  the 
time  when  he  parted  from  Dollier  de  Casson  and  Galinee,  have 
not  been  clearly  followed,  and  probably  never  will  be.  Ga- 
briel Gravier,  in  an  elaborate  work 6  published  in  1870,  ex- 
plicitly states  that  after  the  visit  of  La  Salle  and  his  com- 
panions to  the  Senecas  in  August,  1669,  and  after  they  had  been 
denied  guidance  to  the  Ohio,  La  Salle  "  set  out  again  on  the 
way  in  the  hope  that  chance  would  furnish  him  with  guides. 
He  did  in  fact  meet  an  Iroquois  who  conducted  him  along  the 
Niagara  to  Lake  Eric,  and  in  five  days,  to  the  western  ex- 
tremity of  this  lake."  This  statement,  of  the  highest  impor- 
tance, if  true,  in  substantiating  a  claim  of  priority  in  the 
region,  is  absolutely  unsupported  by  any  known  documentary 
evidence. 

Some  slight  indication  of  his  whereabouts  in  the  two  years 
that  followed  his  meeting  with  Joliet  is  afforded  by  the  docu- 
ments. In  February,  1671,  Colbert  wrote  to  Talon  of  "  the 

o  "  DtcovTertca  rt  Ktablissements  dr  fareUfr  (If  la  Salle  de  Rouen  dans 
rAmfritfitc  <lu  .\r>nl,"   Paris   (also   Kouen),  1STO,  p.  5S. 


FRANCE  TAKES  POSSESSION  31 

resolution  you  have  taken  to  send  Sieur  de  la  Salle  towards  the 
South  ...  to  discover  the  South  Sea  passage."  7  That  La 
Salle  was  absent  on  such  a  journey  in  this  year  is  a  fair  in- 
ference from  a  statement  in  a  letter  from  Talon  to  the  King, 
dated  Quebec,  November  2,  1671:  "Sieur  de  la  Salle  has  not 
yet  returned  from  his  journey  to  the  southward  of  this  coun- 
try." 

That  he  was  back  in  1673  is  matter  of  clear  record.  In 
May  of  that  year  Frontenac  sent  him  to  Onondaga  to  summon 
the  Iroquois,  to  a  meeting  at  Rente.  In  July  La  Salle  wrote 
to  Frontenac,  advising  the  Count  that  200  Indians  would  come 
to  see  him,  the  meeting-place  being  changed  to  Cataraqui. 

Of  many  subsequent  events  in  La  Sallc's  career,  bearing 
more  and  more  upon  the  region  we  are  studying,  it  is  super- 
fluous to  enter  into  detail.  In  1674  he  petitioned  for  a  grant 
on  Lake  Ontario ;  his  prayer  was  granted  by  royal  decree, 
May  13,  1675.  The  new  establishment  which  he  there  built 
up,  he  named  Fort  Frontenac ;  and  although  its  earlier  name 
of  Cataraqui  was  often  applied  to  it,  for  many  years  there- 
after, for  convenience  in  this  narrative  it  will  be  referred  to  as 
Fort  Frontenac. 

On  this  same  May  13,  1675,  La  Salle  was  granted  a  patent 
of  nobility;  and  three  years  later  (May  12,  1678)  he  was 
licensed  "  to  endeavor  to  discover  the  western  part  of  New 
France  " —  an  ingenuous  phrase,  establishing  claim  before  dis- 
covery. For  the  execution  of  this  undertaking,  La  Salle  was 
authorized  "  to  construct  forts  in  the  places  you  may  think 
necessary."  Armed  with  this  authority,  he  fitted  out  his  fa- 
mous expedition  of  1678. 

Several  modern  writers  have  undertaken  to  show  that  La 
Salle,  between  1670  and  1673,  not  only  discovered  the  Ohio, 
and  passed  down  its  waters  to  present  Louisville,  but  that  he 
is  entitled  to  great  distinction  in  the  annals  of  Western  New 
York  for  having  discovered  Niagara  Falls,  voyaged  on  Lake 
Erie  (prior  to  1679),  and  having  been  the  first  white  man  on 
the  site  of  Buffalo.  Still  another  concludes  that  he  was  the 
discoverer  of  Chautauqua  Lake,  and  entered  the  Ohio  bv  that 
•  N".  V.  Col.  Pocs.,  IX. 


32  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

route.  But  all  of  these  claims  are  unsupported  by  evidence 
from  trustworthy  source  authorities. 

It  is  to  be  noted  that  from  La  Salle's  own  day,  the  English 
doubted,  or  pretended  to  doubt,  and  denied,  much  that  the 
French  claimed  for  La  Salle.  In  1686,  while  the  explorer  was 
yet  alive,  Governor  Dongan  sent  to  England  a  map  showing 
"  a  great  river  discovered  by  one  Lassal  a  French  man  from 
Canada."  Whether  he  referred  to  the  Mississippi  or  the  Ohio, 
or  to  the  combined  water-way  which  they  make,  it  was  an  in- 
discreet admission,  for  presently  the  English  set  up  the  claim 
that  the  French  had  no  claim  to  the  Ohio  region  by  discovery. 

Some  attempt  has  been  made  to  show  that  La  Salle  was 
on  the  Niagara  between  1670  and  1678.  A  possible  basis  for 
such  a  claim  is  found  in  the  English  translation  of  reports  and 
memoirs  of  Denonville,  one  of  which  says  that  La  Salle's  ship 
above  the  Falls  sailed  in  1677.  It  also  states  that  La  Salle 
had  employed  canoes  in  trade  "  for  several  years  in  the  rivers 
Oyo,  [Ohio],  Sabache  [Wabash]  and  others";  this,  prior  to 
1677.  The  English  translation  of  Denonville's  Act  of  taking 
possession  of  Niagara  in  1687,  says  that  La  Salle  built  cabins 
and  established  settlers  at  Niagara  in  1668,  and  that  the  lodg- 
ings were  burned  "  12  years  ago,"  i.  e.,  in  1675.  In  1688 
Denonville  mentions  "  two  writings  drawn  up  by  Sieur  La 
Salle  for  the  benefit  of  Moyse  Hilser  (sic},  dated  at  Fort 
Crevecoeur  the  1st  and  2d  March,  1680,  which  afford  evi- 
dence of  the  said  Sieur  de  La  Salle's  residence  and  trade  at 
Niagara  in  1676."  He  further  says  that  La  Salle  had  built 
a  store,  forge  and  other  buildings  at  Niagara  in  1676. 

Of  these  statements  —  assuming  that  the  English  transla- 
tions are  accurate  —  it  need  only  be  observed  that  they  are 
palpable  errors;  that  Denonville's  dates  in  1687  do  not  agree 
with  his  statements  of  1688;  and  both  are  disproved  by  au- 
thentic and  well-known  documents.  We  have  no  proof  that 
La  Salle  entered  the  Niagara  prior  to  December,  1678. 

Frontcnac  was  the  father  of  Fort  Niagara.  Scarcely  had 
he  completed  his  palisades  at  Cataraqui  —  which  post  here- 
after becomes  Fort  Frontenac  —  than  we  see  him  projecting 
another  establishment.  November  13,  1673,  he  writes  to  the 


FRANCE  TAKES  POSSESSION  33 

Minister  of  Finance  that  by  the  aid  of  another  fort  at  the 
mouth  of  the  Niagara  and  a  vessel  on  Lake  Erie  the  French 
could  command  the  Upper  Lakes.  The  Minister,  Colbert,  re- 
plying in  May,  1674,  counsels  the  Governor  against  undertak- 
ing exploration  of  the  interior.  He  is  explicit  in  stating  the 
royal  will.  "  His  Majesty's  view  is  not,"  he  wrote  under  date 
of  May  17th,  "  that  you  undertake  great  voyages  by  ascend- 
ing the  River  St.  Lawrence,  nor  that  the  inhabitants  spread 
themselves,  for  the  future,  further  than  they  have  already 
done.  .  .  .  He  deems  it  much  more  agreeable  to  the  good  of 
this  service  that  you  apply  yourself  to  the  clearing  and  settle- 
ment of  those  tracts  which  are  most  fertile  and  nearest  the 
sea-coasts  and  the  communication  with  France,  than  to  think 
of  distant  discoveries  in  the  interior  of  the  Country,  so  far  off 
that  they  can  never  be  settled  or  possessed  by  Frenchmen." 
Yet  the  cautious  Colbert  immediately  added  two  exceptions  to 
this  rule.  Frontcnac  might  take  possession  of  countries 
"  necessary  to  the  trade  and  traffic  of  the  French  "  which  were 
"  open  to  discovery  and  occupation  by  any  other  Nation  that 
may  disturb  French  commerce  and  trade";  and  he  might  seek 
to  establish  himself  in  any  country  which  would  afford  to 
France  a  sea  communication  from  the  interior  more  southerly 
than  the  mouth  of  the  St.  Lawrence. 

In  view  of  the  privileges  allowed  in  the  exceptions,  Frontcnac 
could  not  have  been  greatly  hampered  by  the  general  rule, 
lie  was  convinced  that  by  establishing  Fort  Frontenac  he  had 
secured  to  the  French  the  allegiance  of  the  Iroquois,  and  fur- 
thered the  safety  of  the  missionaries.  In  the  General  Memoir 
on  the  state  of  Canada  in  1674,  which  he  sent  to  Colbert  in 
November  of  that  year,  lie  pledges  the  support  of  Fort  Fron- 
tenac without  cost  to  the  King,  promises  to  pull  it  down  if  its 
abandonment  were  insisted  on,  and  says:  ".  .  .  It  is  cer- 
tain that  the  Country  will  never  be  thoroughly  formed  until 
it  will  have  towns  and  villages.  This  however  will  never  be 
accomplished  unless  bv  following  the  example  the  English  and 
Dutch  have  set  in  their  count  rv;  which  is,  to  designate  the 

•  O 

place   where   the  Indian  trade  will  he  carried  on,  with  a  pro- 
hibition  to   pursue   it   in   private   settlements,   or   to   take   pos- 


34       AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

session  of  rapids  and  carrying  places.     It  is  thus  our  neigh- 
bors have  built  up  Manatte  and  Orange.8 

"  Sieur  Joliet,  whom  Monsieur  Talon  advised  me,  on  my 
arrival  from  France,  to  dispatch  for  the  discovery  of  the 
South  Sea,  has  returned  three  months  ago,  and  discovered 
some  very  fine  countries,  and  a  navigation  so  easy  through  the 
beautiful  rivers  he  has  found,  that  a  person  can  go  from 
Lake  Ontario  and  Fort  Frontenac  in  a  bark  to  the  Gulf  of 
Mexico,  there  being  only  one  carrying-place,  half  a  league  in 
length,  where  Lake  Ontario  communicates  with  Lake  Erie. 
A  settlement  could  be  made  at  this  point  and  another  bark 
built  on  Lake  Erie.  These  are  projects  which  it  will  be  pos- 
sible to  effect  when  Peace  will  be  firmly  established,  and  when- 
ever it  will  please  the  king  to  prosecute  these  discoveries." 

If  Joliet  advised  Frontenac  to  fortify  and  hold  the  mouth 
of  the  Niagara,  he  must  have  done  it  on  the  strength  of  what 
de  Casson,  Galinee  or  La  Salle  had  told  him  when  they  met 
in  the  wilderness.  The  priests  were  not  likely  to  give  much 
heed  to  such  a  matter,  but  La  Salle  was  exceedingly  likely  to 
see  the  advantage  of  a  post  at  this  point.  For  that  matter, 
enough  information  about  the  Niagara  region  had  already 
reached  Frontenac  to  enable  him  to  appreciate  the  desirability 
of  a  post  there.  The  passages  above  quoted  are  the  first  of- 
ficial record  counseling  the  erection  of  a  fort  on  the  Niagara. 
The  specific  annals  of  Fort  Niagara  therefore  date  from 
November  13,  1673,  and  to  Louis  de  Buade,  "  Count  de  Paluan 
and  de  Frontenac,"  belongs  the  credit  for  the  inception  of 
the  enterprise. 

That  considerable  knowledge  of  the  Lower  Lakes  and 
Niagara  region  was  possessed  by  French  officials  in  Canada 
before  the  time  of  La  Salle's  great  undertaking,  is  indicated 
by  many  documents.  In  a  memoir  of  M.  de  La  Chesnaye, 
written  in  1676,  occurs  a  statement  of  the  size  of  the  Lakes: 
"  Ontario  is  200  leagues  in  circumference,  Lake  Erie,  above 
the  Niagara,  250  leagues,  Lakes  Huron  and  Michigan  together, 
552  leagues  "  —  a  singular  attempt  at  precision.  "  Com- 
munication may  be  had  by  vessel  through  these  lakes.  There 

8  New  York  and  Albany. 


FRANCE  TAKES  POSSESSION  35 

is  only  the  Niagara  portage  of  two  leagues,  above  Lake  On- 
tario. All  who  have  been  in  these  lakes  say  they  are  an  earthly 
paradise,  full  of  game  and  fish,  and  with  the  best  of  lands. 
The  way  into  this  vast  country  is  by  the  great  river  [St.  Law- 
rence], and  Lake  Ontario  and  through  the  Niagara.  It  would 
be  made  easy,  in  time  of  peace,  by  establishing  families  at 
Niagara  for  the  portage,  and  by  building  vessels  on  Lake 
Erie.  I  should  find  no  difficulty  about  that." 

These  suggestions,  it  will  be  noted,  were  made  three  years 
before  La  Salle  built  the  Griffon. 


CHAPTER  IV 

A  FAMOUS  EPISODE 

LA  SALLE  AND  ins  LIEUTENANTS  OF  1678  —  FORT  DE  CONTY  — 
BUILDING  AND  VOYAGE  OF  THE  GRIFFON  —  AN  ADVENTURE  ON 
LAKE  ERIE  AS  RELATED  BY  LA  SALLE. 

No  episode  in  the  history  of  the  Great  Lakes  has  received 
more  attention  from  writers  than  the  coming  of  La  Salle  in 
1678,  and  his  operations  and  adventures  of  the  years  follow- 
ing. 

Sparks  was  the  first  to  recognize  the  large  importance  and 
significance  of  La  Salle  as  a  figure  in  American  history.  Park- 
man  was  drawn  to  him  as  to  one  with  spirit  somewhat  akin  to 
his  own,  wrote  of  him  with  wonderful  clearness  and  apprecia- 
tion, and  with  a  fullness  and  accuracy  that  make  most  subse- 
quent studies  of  him  superfluous.  Marshall  established  certain 
facts  of  peculiar  import  in  the  Niagara  region.  Margry  with 
his  mass  of  documents,  and  followers  claiming  overmuch  for 
their  hero ;  Shea  with  his  subtle  study,  granting  to  the  hero 
too  little;  these  and  a  host  beside,  French,  British,  Canadian, 
American,  have  now  for  many  years  been  adding  to  the 
abundant  literature  of  the  subject.  A  detailed  recital  of  La 
Salle's  exploits  on  the  inland  waterways  of  America  would  be 
now  in  large  degree  superfluous.  Yet  these  exploits,  so  far  as 
they  relate  to  the  Niagara  and  adjacent  lakes,  belong  to  our 
story  and  must  be  chronicled.  The  more  familiar  facts  may 
be  stated  briefly ;  while  less  familiar  phases  of  the  episode, 
if  not  shown  in  new  light,  may  at  least  be  viewed  from  a  new 
angle. 

Frontenac  wrote  to  Colbert  (November  11,  1674)  that 
Joliet,  who  had  returned  three  months  before,  had  discovered 
splendid  countries  "  and  a  navigation  so  easy  by  the  fine  rivers 
that  he  had  found,  that  from  Fort  Frontenac  on  Lake  On- 
tario, one  could  go  by  boat  even  to  the  Gulf  of  Mexico  with 
but  one  unlading  to  make  in  the  strait  where  the  Lake  Ontario 

30 


A  FAMOUS  EPISODE  37 

falls  into  Eric  "  —  a  most  strange  slip  for  Frontenac  to  make 
— "  which  is  perhaps  a  half  league  in  length,  and  where  a 
house  should  be  built  and  another  barque  on  Lake  Erie.  These 
are  Projects,"  he  adds,  "  which  can  be  attended  to  when  peace 
is  well  established  and  it  shall  please  the  King  to  push  on 
these  discoveries." 

In  May,  1675,  the  French  Government  granted  certain 
privileges  to  La  Salle.  The  mature  Frontenac  and  the  young 
and  ardent  La  Salle  were  not  unlike  in  temperament.  The 
latter's  activity  and  ambition  commended  themselves  to  the 
former's  judgment  and  policy.  La  Salic  was  willing  to  assume 
the  responsibility  of  Fort  Frontenac,  and  to  give  up  his  es- 
tates in  France  for  it;  and  on  May,  1675,  it  was  granted  to 
him  as  a  seigniory  and  he  was  ennobled.  This  first  fortified 
spot  on  Lake  Ontario  now  became  the  base  of  operations, 
from  which  the  occupation  of  the  Niagara  was  conducted.  At 
St.  Germain,  May  12,  1678,  the  King  and  the  Councilor  Col- 
bert signed  the  license  giving  La  Salle  permission  to  pursue 
his  explorations,  or,  in  the  words  of  the  precious  document, 
"  to  discover  the  Western  part  of  New  France."  "  There  is 
nothing,"  said  Louis,  "  We  have  more  at  heart  than  the  dis- 
covery of  that  country,  where  there  is  a  prospect  of  finding 
a  way  to  penetrate  as  far  as  Mexico.  .  .  .  These  and  other 
causes  LTs  moving  hereunto,  We  have  permitted,  and  by  these 
Presents,  signed  by  Our  hand,  do  permit  you  to  labor  in  the 
Discovery  of  the  Western  part  of  New  France,  and  for  the 
execution  of  this  undertaking,  to  construct  forts  in  the  places 
you  may  think  necessary,  where  of  We  will  that  you  enjoy 
the  same  clauses  and  conditions  as  of  Fort  Frontenac  ...  on 
condition,  nevertheless,  that  you  complete  this  enterprise 
within  five  years,  in  default  whereof,  these  presents  shall  be 
null  and  void;  and  that  you  do  not  carry  on  any  trade  with 
the  Savages  called  Outaouacs  l  and  others  who  carry  their 
beavers  and  peltries  to  Montreal;  that  you  perform  the  whole 
at  your  expense  and  that  of  your  associates,  to  whom  we  have 
granted,  as  a  privilege,  the  trade  in  Cibola  2  skins." 

La  Salle  lost  no  time.      lie  sailed  from  Rochelle  —  that  liis- 

1  Ottawas.  -  Buffalo,  i.  c.,  bison. 


38  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

toric  old  port  which  was  the  point  of  departure  for  many  an 
American  undertaking  —  July  14th;  he  was  at  Quebec  Sep- 
tember 15th  —  an  average  voyage  for  those  days;  and  was 
soon  after  fitting  out  his  expedition. 

From  Fort  Frontenac  he  planned  an  exploration  to  the 
west  and  south,  and  for  the  prosecution  of  the  fur  trade.  Late 
in  1678  he  sent  14  or  15  men  to  the  Upper  Lakes,  with  goods 
for  trade.  They  traveled  by  canoe,  but  which  route  they  took, 
whether  by  the  Ottawa  River,  the  Simcoe  portage  or  the 
Niagara  and  Lake  Erie,  is  nowhere  stated ;  but  that  they  went 
by  the  Niagara  portage  and  Lake  Erie  is  evident  from  Tonty's 
statement  that  La  Salle  "  sent  me  with  five  men  to  the  strait 
and  separation  of  Lake  Huron  from  that  of  Erie,  to  join  14 
Frenchmen  to  whom  he  had  given  rendezvous  in  that  place." 
Had  they  gone  by  a  more  northern  route  La  Salle  would  not 
have  made  the  Detroit  the  place  of  meeting.  Tonty's  state- 
ment practically  establishes  the  fact  that  14  Frenchmen 
passed  up  the  Niagara  before  La  Salle  is  known  to  have  done 
so ;  and  that  they,  Tonty  and  the  five  men  with  him,  preceded 
La  Salle  in  voyaging  through  Lake  Erie. 

Having  sent  off  this  advance  party  of  traders,  La  Salle 
sent  another  company  of  16  men,  ship-carpenters,  blacksmiths, 
and  other  artisans,  to  the  Niagara,  to  build  a  vessel  above  the 
falls,  in  which  to  continue  his  explorations.  Under  command 
of  the  Sieur  de  la  Motte,  and  accompanied  by  the  missionary 
Louis  Hennepin,  they  sailed  from  Frontenac  November  18th, 
in  a  brigantinc  of  10  tons. 

On  December  6th  they  entered  the  Niagara  River.  The 
next  day  Hennepin  and  five  companions,  in  a  canoe,  ascended 
the  river  until  stopped  by  the  rapids ;  then  proceeded  on  foot, 
on  the  Canada  side,  to  Chippewa  creek.  Returning  to  the 
brigantine  they  reported  that  they  had  not  found  a  suitable 
place  for  the  proposed  ship-building.  December  15th,  they 
sailed  and  towed  the  brigantine  up  the  river  to  the  foot  of 
the  rapids,  moored  her  on  the  American  side  —  present  Lewis- 
ton  —  and  devoted  the  next  three  days  to  building  a  store- 
house, which  they  surrounded  with  palisades.  It  was  the  first 
white  man's  structure  on  the  Niagara. 


A  FAMOUS  EPISODE  iJ9 

The  Scnccas  showing  signs  of  hostility,  it  was  thought  ad- 
visable to  visit  their  village,  some  80  miles  to  the  eastward,  to 
placate  them  with  gifts  and  speeches.  La  Motte,  Hennepin 
and  four  French  companions,  one  of  whom  was  Anthony 
Brassart,  interpreter,  left  the  cabin  at  Lewiston,  upon  this 
mission,  on  Christmas  Day,  1678,  returning  January  14, 
1679.  They  had  met  with  but  a  dubious  success. 

In  the  meantime  La  Salle  and  his  chief  lieutenant,  Henri  de 
Tonty,  who  had  remained  at  Frontenac  to  procure  supplies 
and  materials  for  the  vessel  which  was  to  be  built,  sailed  on  a 
brigantinc  of  20  tons,  bound  for  Niagara.  On  the  way  they 
landed  near  the  mouth  of  the  Gcnesce  River  and  went  inland 
to  the  Seneca  village  Tagarondies,  to  treat  with  the  natives. 
La  Salle  had  been  there  in  1669  with  Dollier  de  Casson  and 
Galinec.  Now,  the  Senecas  granted  to  him  —  what  they  had 
not  granted  to  La  Motte  and  Hennepin  —  the  sought-for  per- 
mission to  build  on  the  Niagara.  Returning  to  the  brigantine, 
La  Salle  sailed  for  the  Niagara,  but  becoming  impatient  with 
her  slow  progress,  he  and  Tonty  were  set  ashore,  apparently 
in  the  vicinity  of  Oak  Orchard  Creek.  Setting  out  to  walk 
thence  along  the  high  bank  to  the  mouth  of  the  Niagara,  La 
Salic  ordered  the  pilot  to  steer  for  the  Niagara,  if  the  wind 
came  from  the  northwest,  to  run  into  shelter  at  the  river  of 
the  Scnccas  —  that  is,  the  Gcnesee  —  until  it  changed.  The 
pilot  and  crew  left  to  themselves,  did  as  they  pleased.  On 
January  8,  1679,  they  left  the  little  vessel  at  anchor,  and 
went  to  sleep  on  shore.  The  wind  rising,  they  were  unable  to 
regain  the  vessel,  which  dragged  her  anchor,  struck  and  was 
wrecked.  It  was  a  grievous  loss,  for  she  was  loaded  with 
everything  needed  in  the  enterprise.  Several  canoes,  also  laden 
with  goods,  were  lost.1'5 

La  Salle  and  Tonty  followed  the  shore  westward,  no  doubt 
walking  for  the  most  part  along  the  edge  of  the  high  bank 
which  for  much  of  the  distance  commands  an  extended  view. 

z"  Relation  <le.t  descouvertes  cf  <!/•*  vni/rtfjc.t  (hi  Ricnr  dr  La  Salic," 
etc.,  Mnrpry  I,  tl-.  According  to  this  document  the  place  of  shipwreck 
was  ten  leagues  from  the  Xiatrara.  Tonty  says  nine  leagues.  (Relation, 
Quebec,  Nov.  U,  Ki8k)  Marshall  locates  it  near  Thirty  Mile  Point. 


40  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

Reaching  the  Niagara  on  the  evening  after  they  had  left  the 
brigantine,  they  were  taken  across  the  mouth  of  the  river  by 
friendly  Indians,  and  given  a  supper  of  white-fish  and  corn 
soup. 

The  way  in  which  La  Salle  divided  and  scattered  his  force 
is  at  times  striking.  For  instance,  at  this  juncture,  when  the 
two  leaders  are  at  the  mouth  of  the  Niagara,  a  part  of  his 
men  are  supposed  to  be  making  their  way  westward  in  Lake 
Ontario  in  the  brigantine.  Of  the  men  under  La  Motte,  some 
are  at  Lewiston,  others  with  La  Motte,  and  far  in  the  Seneca 
country;  and  fifteen,  as  we  have  noted,  under  an  unknown 
leader,  with  their  canoes  filled  with  trading  goods,  have  van- 
ished up  the  Lakes.  This  scattering  of  forces,  as  we  study 
the  career  of  La  Salle,  is  constantly  to  be  remarked.  Often, 
it  was  no  doubt  necessary.  At  other  times,  it  told  against 
safety  and  success. 

With  his  usual  impatience  La  Salle,  accompanied  by  Tonty, 
set  out  at  midnight,  "  by  moonlight,"  to  join  La  Motte  and 
his  company;  but  when  the  cabin  under  Lewiston  heights  was 
reached,  they  found  La  Motte  and  those  who  had  gone  with 
him  to  the  Seneca  town  still  absent. 

It  is  recorded  that  the  next  day,  leaving  Tonty  at  Lewiston, 
La  Salle  went  up  the  river  —  whether  wholly  unaccompanied 
or  not  is  not  told  —  and  located  the  spot  where  he  would 
build  his  boat.  Undoubtedly,  he  followed  an  Indian  path 
through  the  forest,  which  afterwards  became  the  old  portage 
road,  coming  out  on  the  river  above  the  upper  rapids.  He 
found  a  favorable  place  for  constructing  his  vessel  on  the  cast 
bank  of  the  Niagara  just  south  of  the  mouth  of  Cavuga  Creek. 
A  narrow  but  deep  channel  was  separated  by  an  island  from 
the  main  river. 

La  Salle  returned  to  Lewiston ;  then,  with  increasing  impa- 
tience at  the  prolonged  absence  of  La  Motte  and  Hcnnepin, 
to  the  mouth  of  the  river,  where  he  learned  of  the  loss  of  his 
vessel  on  Lake  Ontario.  At  once  he  set  out  along  shore  to  the 
scene  of  the  disaster.  What  ensued,  between  him  and  the  un- 
faithful pilot,  is  not  recorded.  One  readily  perceives,  how- 
ever, that  it  was  an  anxious  time,  with  the  success  of  the  whole 


A  FAMOUS  EPISODE  41 

great  adventure  in  jeopardy.  It  was  the  sort  of  crisis  that 
tests  leadership ;  and  the  outcome  shows  that  whatever  quali- 
ties of  leadership  La  Salle  lacked,  he  was  not  easily  discour- 
aged. 

There  was  much  coming  and  going.  On  January  22d  we 
find  La  Salle  with  Tonty  and  Ilennepin  at  the  shipyard  above 
the  falls.  On  the  way  there,  La  Salle  visited  the  great  cataract, 
which  he  is  not  known  to  have  seen  before.  Carpenters  and 
blacksmiths  were  set  to  work,  cabins  were  built  and  a  chapel, 
all  of  logs  and  bark.  Who  that  knows  the  climate  of  the 
Niagara  region  in  January  can  conceive  the  degree  of  comfort 
afforded  by  these  hasty  and  inadequate  structures.  Indian 
hunters  helped  out  the  supply  of  food.  The  keel  of  the  boat 
was  laid,  January  26th ;  and  with  the  work  seemingly  well 
under  way,  La  Salle  returned  to  Fort  Frontenac,  to  appease 
his  creditors  and  obtain  more  supplies.  The  journey  was 
made  on  foot,  with  two  companions.  They  wore  snowshoes, 
and  a  sledge  drawn  by  a  dog  carried  their  luggage.  Their 
only  food  was  a  bag  of  parched  corn,  which  gave  out  before 
the  journey  over  the  ice  and  through  the  forests  was  accom- 
plished. 

La  Salle  was  accompanied  as  far  as  the  mouth  of  the  Niagara 
by  Tonty;  and  on  February  1st,  before  starting  on  his  long 
tramp  over  the  ice,  "  he  traced  at  the  outlet  of  the  river  a 
fort  which  he  named  Fort  Conty."  4  This  is  the  first  white 
man's  construction  on  the  site  of  Fort  Niagara. 

The  first  building  erected  on  the  Niagara  bv  civilized  men 
was  the  palisaded  house  at  Lewiston,  built  by  La  Motte  and 
his  men,  December  16  to  18,  1678.  In  January  various  con- 
structions were  made  at  the  shipyard  above  the  falls ;  but  it  was 
not  until  February  1,  1679,  that  ground  was  broken  on  the 
present  site  of  Fort  Niagara. 

The  question  is  often  asked,  "  Did  La  Salle  really  fortify 
the  present  site  of  Fort  Niagara'"''  Let  two  of  our  ancient 
authorities  answer.  Ilennepin,  iiv  his  most  trustworthy  nar- 
rative, ("La  Loiiisianc  ")  puts  the  matter  thus:  "It  is  at 
the  mouth  of  Lake  Frontenac  [Ontario]  that  a  fort  was  be- 

4  Tontv's  Ilfldtinn  in  Marirrv,  I,  577. 


42  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

gun,  which  might  have  been  able  to  keep  the  Iroquois  in  check 
and  especially  the  Tsounontouans  [Senecas],  the  most  nu- 
merous and  most  powerful  of  all,  and  prevent  the  trade  which 
they  carry  on  with  the  English  and  Dutch,  for  quantities  of 
furs  which  they  are  obliged  to  seek  in  the  western  countries, 
and  pass  by  Niagara  going  and  coming,  where  they  might  be 
stopped  in  a  friendly  way  in  time  of  peace,  and  by  force  in 
time  of  war ;  but  the  Iroquois,  excited  by  some  persons  envi- 
ous of  the  Sieur  de  la  Salle,  took  umbrage  so  that  as  they 
were  not  in  a  position  to  resist  them,  they  contented  them- 
selves with  building  there  a  house  defended  by  palisades  which 
is  called  Fort  de  Conty  and  the  place  is  naturally  defensive, 
and  beside  it  there  is  a  very  fine  harbor  for  barks  to  retire 
to  in  security." 

La  Salle's  own  account,  written  at  Fort  Frontenac  August 
22,  1682,  is  more  edifying  yet:  "  The  Iroquois  did  not  oppose 
the  construction  of  the  fort  commenced  at  the  discharge  of 
Lake  Erie ;  5  but  the  loss  of  the  first  bark  having  obliged  me 
to  use  most  of  my  men,  during  the  whole  winter,  for  the 
transport  of  what  I  had  saved  from  it,  I  contented  myself 
with  making  there  two  redoubts  40  feet  square,  upon  a  point 
easy  of  defense,  made  of  great  timbers,  one  upon  another, 
musket-proof,  and  joined  by  a  palisade,  where  I  put  a  sergeant 
and  several  men,  who  during  my  absence G  allowed  all  this 
work  to  burn,  through  negligence ;  and  not  being  in  condition 
to  reestablish  it,  there  remains  there  only  a  magazine." 

In  his  memoir  of  1684  La  Salle  wrote:  "  There  is  a  house 
at  the  mouth  of  the  Niagara  River,  the  most  important  on 
the  whole  lake,  to  cut  off  the  trade  of  the  English,  and  which 
the  barques  of  the  Fort  [Frontenac]  can  reach  in  two  days; 
it  cost  about  2000  livres.  It  is  all  that  remains  from  the 
fire  which  happened  at  the  little  fort  which  had  been  built 
there."  7 

5  He  alludes  to  the  entire  Niagara  as  "the  discharge." 
0  His  word  is  "  voi/ar/c,"  referring  to  his  journeys  of  1079-80. 
7  Denonville,  writing-  to  Seignelay,  Get.  27,  Ifi87,  said:  "The  post  I  have 
fortified  at  Niagara  is  not  a  novelty  sinee  Sieur  de  la   Salle  had   a  house 
there  which  is  in  ruins  sinee  a  year  when  Serjeant  La  Fleur,  whom  T  placed 
at  Cataracouy,  abandoned  it  through  the  intrigues  of  the  English  who  so- 


A  FAMOUS  EPISODE  43 

Here  then  is  the  history  of  the  first  fort  on  or  near  the  site 
of  the  present  Fort  Niagara,  told  by  the  man  who  caused  it  to 
be  built.  Who  superintended  the  work?  Not  La  Salle,  for 
he  presently  returned  to  Fort  Frontenac ;  not  Tonty,  for  he 
.was  busy  at  the  shipyard  above  the  falls.  The  man  chosen 
by  La  Salle  for  this  work  was  Dominique  de  la  Motte-Lussiere, 
who  had  come  to  Canada  with  him  the  preceding  year.  He 
should  not  be  confused  with  a  far  more  distinguished  soldier, 
Pierre  de  Saint  Paul,  Sicur  de  la  Motte-Lussiere,  a  captain  of 
the  Carignan  regiment  and  the  builder  of  Fort  Ste.  Anne  on 
Isle  La  Motte,  named  for  him,  in  Lake  Champlain.  Several 
other  soldiers  of  France  serving  in  America  bore  the  name  La 
Motte,  and  more  than  one  writer  has  confused  them.  One 
was  Jean  Deleau,  Sieur  de  la  Motte,  who  commanded  at  Cham- 
bly  in  1677.  Another  was  Claude  de  la  Motte,  Marquis  de 
Jourdis  (or  Jordis),  killed  by  the  Iroquois  in  1687.  Still  an- 
other was  Louis  de  la  Rue,  Chevalier  de  la  Motte,  a  lieutenant, 
who  was  killed  by  the  Iroquois  at  St.  Fran9ois-du-lac,  in 
1690. 

To  Dominique  de  la  Motte-Lussiere  was  entrusted  the  actual 
construction  of  La  Salle's  proposed  fort.  But  he  very  soon 
took  a  final  departure  from  the  Niagara. 

There  is  preserved 8  a  letter  in  which  La  Motte  described 
his  relations  with  La  Salle.  "  In  March,  1678,"  he  writes, 
"  I  had  the  good  fortune  to  meet  M.  de  La  Salle,  who  engaged 
me  for  his  company  in  the  discovery  which  he  has  made  in 
the  Illinois,  promising  me  a  share  in  his  fortune.  I  resolved 
to  follow  him  everywhere,  with  no  guarantee  except  his  prom- 
ises." 

He  joined  La  Salle  at  Rochelle  and  embarked  with  him. 
Who  can  doubt  that  during  the  tedious  voyage  much  talk  was 

licitcd  the  Seneeas  to  expel  him  by  threats."  We  know  but  little  of  La 
Fleur.  In  1679  he  was  at  Fort  Orange  (Albany)  and  narrowly  escaped 
being  sent  a  prisoner  to  New  York.  Through  him  news  reached  Quebec 
in  November,  1679,  of  war  between  F.ngland  and  France.  In  IfiSt-  he  was 
stationed  at  Frontenac.  A  letter  of  1709  (Hamezay  to  Vaudreuil)  speaks 
of  a  fort  on  the  Hudson  "where  La  Fleur  lived,"  apparently  in  British 
interest. 

«  Manrrv,  II,  7-9. 


44  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

had  of  this  marvelous  region  into  which  they  hoped  to  come ! 
La  Motte  continues: 

"  We  arrived  at  Katarouqui  November  8th,  after  a  very  fa- 
tiguing journey;  and  a  few  days  later,  complying  with  La 
Salle's  orders,  that  I  should  go  to  Niagara  and  choose  a  spot 
for  a  fort,  to  protect  the  building  of  a  barque,  I  set  out  on 
Christmas  Day  from  Niagara  with  presents  and  went  on  foot 
through  the  woods  to  the  Senecas,  at  least  80  leagues  going 
and  coming."  The  barque  was  to  be  built  above  the  Falls; 
and  one  may  well  question  how  a  fort  near  Lake  Ontario 
could  protect  it.  The  storehouse  which  was  built  there,  was 
a  convenience  when  supplies  from  Fort  Frontenac  were  to  be 
landed  and  forwarded  over  the  portage.  The  documents  no- 
where mention  the  construction  by  La  Salle  of  a  fortified  build- 
ing above  the  falls,  cither  at  the  head  of  the  portage  or  at  the 
shipyard. 

La  Motte  gives  some  particulars  of  the  visit  to  the  Senecas, 
by  which,  he  says,  a  quantity  of  corn  was  secured  in  trade, 
nineteen  minots  of  which  he  sent  to  Frontenac  "  by  Gastarct 
and  the  Gascon,"  and  22  minots  were  sent  to  Tonty,  "  who  I 
found  at  the  cape  where  the  first  barque  was  wrecked ;  and 
18  minots  of  which  I  brought  in  in  the  said  brigantine  after 
having  fished  up  an  anchor  which  M.  de  Tonty  had  lost  in  the 
lake.  I  set  out  the  next  day  to  return  to  Frontenac,  to  take 
command  there,  under  orders  of  the  Sieur  de  La  Salle,  en- 
dorsed by  the  Count  de  Frontenac.  All  these  exposures 
brought  about  such  a  severe  inflammation  of  the  eyes  that  I  had 
to  go  down  to  Montreal,  in  the  fear  of  losing  my  sight."  He 
adds  a  complaint  because  La  Salle  had  never  reimbursed  him 
for  services  rendered. 

The  relations  of  La  Motte  and  La  Salle  at  the  last  are 
curious.  In  the  earlier  part  of  this  Niagara  episode,  there 
is  nothing  to  show  that  La  Motte  was  not  worthy  of  the 
trust  imposed  upon  him.  Perhaps  his  rough  experience  among 
the  Senecas  soured  him  against  the  expedition.  lie  lacked 
physical  endurance,  and  snow-blindness  or  some  other  affec- 
tion nearly  robbed  him  of  his  sight.  lie  was  sent  to  Fort 
Frontenac,  but  se<:ms  immediately  to  have  gone  on  down  to 


A  FAMOUS  EPISODE  45 

Montreal,  though  still,  apparently,  in  La  Salle's  service. 
There  is  a  letter  dated  Niagara,  January  27,  1679,  in  which 
La  Salle  writes  to  La  Motte  as  follows :  "  Sir,  I  will  say  no 
more  concerning  the  sentiments  I  hold  as  to  your  zeal  and 
your  courage.  It  only  remains  for  me  to  beg  you  to  have 
as  much  firmness  with  respect  to  our  people,  and  to  beg  that 
their  discontent  shall  cause  no  change  in  what  you  shall  once 
have  resolved  upon,  and  what  I  shall  have  asked  of  you." 

The  letter  —  the  first  one  on  record  as  having  been  written 
from  the  Niagara  —  concludes  with  a  postscript  admonition 
for  La  Motte  to  "be  careful  of  the  new  hatchet."  "That 
wonderful  instrument  the  Ax "  was  a  precious  thing  in  the 
wilderness  in  those  days. 

In  the  letter  above  quoted  from,  La  Motte  virtually  says 
that  La  Salle  used  him  in  the  Niagara  wilderness  all  winter  — 
in  fact,  nearly  a  year,  for  he  joined  La  Salle's  party  in  France, 
March,  1678  —  and  then  sent  him  back  to  Montreal  with 
nothing  but  promises.  La  Salle,  on  the  other  hand,  com- 
plained bitterly  of  La  Motte's  treachery,  and  his  attempts  to 
estrange  the  men  from  the  expedition. 

Bidding  adieu  to  his  chief,  Tonty  returned  to  the  shipyard. 
On  the  way  thither  lie  turned  aside  to  view  the  great  fall.  "  I 
may  say,"  he  afterwards  wrote,  "  that  it  is  the  most  beautiful 
fall  in  all  the  world.  According  to  our  reckoning,  it  descends 
perpendicularly  500  feet  and  is  at  least  200  toises  9  in  width. 
It  throws  up  vapors  which  can  be  seen  16  leagues  away,  and  it 
can  be  heard  a  like  distance  when  the  weather  is  calm.  When 
swans  and  bustards  10  become  caught  in  the  current,  they  are 
unable  to  take  flight,  and  are  dead  before  reaching  the  bot- 
tom of  the  fall." 

La  Motte's  letter  n  gives  him  the  credit  of  recovering  the 
wrecked  brigantine.  lie  also  says  that  it  was  he  who  had  the 

o  Equal  to  1JTO  feet,  the  toise  lu-inir  G/.m.W  feet.  The  actual  width  of 
the  porpe  opposite  the  American  fall  is  1250  feet;  but  the  width  of  the 
American  and  Horseshoe  falls  together  is  more  than  1,000  feet. 

10  Tonty's  word  is  ontardc.     What  he  mistook  for  the  Old  World  bustard, 
inifrht  have   been   any  of  our   larpe   aquatic   fowl.     Charlevoix   uses   outardc, 
which  Shea  renders  as  Canadian  jroosc.      (H<-niirln  ('(inadrnxis.) 

11  In  Martrry,  II,  7  !),  where  it  appears  without  date  or  address. 


46  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

brigantine  hauled  up  "  into  a  ravine  between  two  mountains, 
by  means  of  a  capstan,  so  that  it  would  be  safe  from  the  ice 
which  in  great  quantity  came  from  Lake  Erie  and  over  the 
Falls."  The  ravine  is  still  to  be  seen  in  the  river  bank  above 
Lewiston.  Hennepin  gives  the  credit  for  the  preservation  of 
the  craft  to  Thomas  Charpentier  of  Artois,  of  whom  we  hear 
no  more  in  all  the  adventure ;  he  was  apparently  among  those 
who  returned  to  Fort  Frontenac. 

Not  the  least  interesting  phase  of  this  episode  is  the  part 
taken  in  it  by  the  missionary  priests  of  the  Franciscan  order. 
Father  Hennepin,  whose  association  with  La  Salle  began  in 
France,  is  the  principal  historian  of  that  part  of  it  relating  to 
the  Great  Lakes.  It  is  unnecessary  here  to  recite  the  familiar 
failings  which  discredit  his  books  for  the  use  of  the  student. 
It  is  enough  to  bear  them  in  mind  as  one  turns  to  his  often 
valuable  narrative.  It  was  Hennepin  who  signalized  the  entry 
of  their  brigantine  into  the  Niagara,  December  6,  1678,  by 
leading  in  the  chant  of  Te  Deum,  and  by  offering  prayers. 
Although  La  Motte,  who  commanded  the  vessel,  had  little 
regard  for  priests  or  the  faith  they  professed,  many  of  his  men 
were  no  doubt  devout,  and  shared  in  a  service  which  dignified 
what  Hennepin  regarded  as  a  discovery.  He  it  was,  too,  who 
on  December  llth,  celebrated  the  first  Mass  ever  said  in  the 
region.  The  records  afford  no  hint  as  to  which  side  of  the 
river  may  claim  this  service;  or  whether  indeed  it  were  not 
held  on  board  the  boat;  but  it  was  on  the  eastern  side  of  the 
river,  at  present  Lewiston,  that  the  first  altar  for  Christian 
worship  in  this  region  was  set  up. 

By  his  own  accounts,  Hennepin  bore  an  important  part  in 
much  of  the  work  that  went  forward.  By  the  accounts  of 
others,  he  was  at  any  rate  busied  with  secular  as  well  as  re- 
ligious duties.  He  shared  in  the  unproductive  embassy  to  the 
Senecas,  and  he  passed  many  times  up  and  down  the  river, 
carrying  burdens  or  messages.  One  of  the  bark  cabins  built 
for  the  workmen  at  the  shipyard  was  set  aside  for  his  use  as 
chapel,  in  which  he  held  service  on  Sundays  and  other  occa- 
sions. When  the  Griffon  was  launched,  he  blessed  it,  and  sang 
Te  Deum.  His  miscellaneous  activities  included  the  keeping  of 


A  FAMOUS  EPISODE  47 

a  journal,  at  which,  he  tells  us,  Tonty  took  umbrage.  Whether 
so  trifling  a  thing  made  him  think  of  leaving  the  expedition,  it 
is  not  worth  while  to  inquire.  Hennepin  set  out  to  return  to 
Frontenac,  accompanied  by  one  Charon,  who  also  cherished 
resentment,  for  some  cause  unknown,  against  Tonty.  Charon 
we  hear  no  more  of;  Hennepin  came  back,  and  when  La  Salle 
presently  returned  to  the  Niagara,  he  brought  three  other 
priests.  One  of  them  was  Gabriel  de  la  Kibourde,  6-1  years  old, 
but  capable  and  zealous ;  one  was  Zenobe  Membre ;  and  the 
third  was  Melithon  Watteau.  Among  all  the  picturesque  in- 
cidents of  these  eventful  months  on  the  Niagara,  nothing  is 
more  striking  than  the  picture  of  the  aged  Father  Ilibourde, 
willingly  shouldering  whatever  burden  needed  to  be  carried, 
and  toiling  cheerfully  up  and  down  the  Lewiston  heights,  those 
"  three  mountains  "  which  figure  so  impressively  in  the  early 
narratives. 

When  the  Griffon  finally  sailed,  Hennepin,  Membre  and 
Ribourde  sailed  with  her ;  but  Father  Watteau  stayed  behind, 
with  a  clerk  and  a  few  soldiers  and  laborers,  to  care  for  the 
goods  left  at  the  head  of  the  portage.  What  his  experiences 
were,  during  the  months  that  followed,  are  unrecorded ;  but 
he  may  fairly  take  his  place  as  the  first  resident  priest,  min- 
istering to  white  men,  in  what  we  know  as  Western  New 
York. 

Through  the  winter  and  spring  of  1679  the  construction  of 
the  boat  went  forward.  Tonty  was  in  command,  but  not  a 
practical  boat-builder.  Hillarct  appears  as  chief  of  the  skilled 
artisans.  There  was  little  disturbance  from  the  Senccas,  most 
of  the  warriors  being  absent  on  an  expedition  south  of  Lake 
Erie.  A  few  lurked  about  ready  to  plunder  or  do  any  possible 
harm.  One,  pretending  drunkenness,  tried  to  kill  the  black- 
smith, "  but,"  says  Hennepin,  "  was  vigorously  repulsed  by 
him  with  a  red-hot  Iron-barr,  which,  together  with  the  Repri- 
mand he  received  from  me,  oblig'd  him  to  be  gone."  As  the 
boat  took  shape  on  the  stocks  the  Scnecas  planned  to  burn 
it,  but  the  plot  was  reveak-d  by  a  Seneca  woman  who  was 
friendly  with  one  of  the  workmen.  La  Salle  was  sternly  in- 
tolerant of  loose  relations  between  his  men  and  the  native 


48       AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

women.  In  this  case,  however,  the  evident  devotion  of  the 
daughter  of  the  forest  to  a  white  admirer  saved  the  ship,  and 
introduces  into  the  chronicle,  somewhat  hazily  it  is  true,  the 
only  woman  who  figures  in  the  seventeenth  century  history  of 
the  Niagara  region.12 

From  this  time  on,  the  work  was  hurried,  under  guard,  and 
in  May  the  hull  was  launched,  to  the  amazement  of  the  In- 
dians, who  had  never  seen  anything  like  it.  Anchored  in  the 
stream,  greater  security  was  felt,  and  the  workmen  hung  their 
hammocks  under  the  deck  and  slept  there,  in  preference  to  the 
huts  on  shore.  What  with  fear  of  the  savages,  dread  of 
starvation,  resentment  because  wages  were  overdue,  and  an 
utter  lack  of  zeal  for  the  enterprise,  the  workmen  had  been  in 
unhappy  humor  from  the  outset.  One  of  them  deserted, 
through  the  wilderness,  towards  the  distant  English  settle- 
ments. 

Stress  is  laid,  by  Hennepin,  on  the  greater  security  which  the 
men  enjoyed  on  board  the  vessel,  than  in  their  huts  on  shore. 
If  the  Griffon  were  built  and  launched,  as  supposed,  in  the 
eastern  arm  of  the  Niagara  just  south  of  the  mouth  of  Cayuga 
Creek,  she  floated,  between  the  east  bank  and  Cayuga  Island, 
in  a  very  narrow  channel.  The  Senecas,  if  in  any  force,  could 
readily  have  gained  and  boarded  her ;  but  they  were  a  good 
deal  in  awe  of  "  the  floating  fort." 

That  news  of  La  Salle's  work  on  the  Niagara  soon  reached 
the  English  is  shown  by  a  letter  of  Governor  Andros  to  Mr. 
Blathwayt,  dated  "  N.  Yorck  ye  25th  of  March  1679."  13  in 
which  we  read: 

An  indian  Sachem  reports  that  ye  frensh  of  Canada  intend  this 
year  to  send  a  Garrison  or  setlem1  into  one  of  their  towns  where  these 
Xtian  captiues  were  a  this  ye  lake  wch  being  of  import  ile  endeauor 
to  preuent  but  if  Efected  will  not  only  endanger  all  ye  indian  trade, 
but  expose  all  ye  King's  plantations  upon  this  continent  where  they 
please  they  pretending  no  bounds  that  way. 

12  The  incident  recalls  one  of  like  character,  in  the  early  history  of 
Detroit,  when  the  garrison  was  saved  from  probable  massacre  by  the  dis- 
closures of  an  Indian  woman  to  one  of  the  soldiers. 

is  N.  Y.  Col.  Docs.,  III.,  278. 


A  FAMOUS  EPISODE  49 

La  Salic  had  personally  little  to  do  with  the  building  of  the 
Griffon.  He  drove  the  first  bolt,  January  26 ;  but  after  that 
lie  was  most  of  the  time  absent,  trying  to  procure  supplies 
and  to  adjust  his  involved  finances  with  merciless  creditors. 
It  was  Tonty  who  met  the  problems  of  the  shipyard ;  and  at 
one  time  it  was  La  Salle's  plan  to  have  Tonty  sail  the  Griffon 
to  the  westward.  "  May  20th,"  says  the  Tonty  relation,  "  the 
Sieur  de  La  Forest,  major  of  Fort  Frontenac,  sent  to  me  or- 
ders from  M.  de  La  Salle  to  go  with  the  barque  which  was  of 
40  tons,  through  the  lakes,  to  notify  the  Illinois  that  he  was 
about  coming  to  live  with  them,  by  the  King's  order.  I  took 
the  barque  as  far  as  the  entrance  to  the  lake,  and  finding  there 
a  great  rapid,  it  was  impossible  to  ascend,  because  of  a  strong 
head-wind."  Tonty  sailed  her  to  an  anchorage  under  the 
shelter  of  Squaw  Island. 

La  Salle  did  not  return  to  the  Niagara  until  August.  "  He 
found  his  barque  ready  to  sail,"  says  the  official  relation,  "  but 
his  men  told  him  they  were  unable  to  get  it  up  to  the  entrance 
to  Lake  Erie,  not  being  able  to  sail  against  the  Niagara  River 
current.  La  Salle  made  them  all  embark.  Thirty  persons 
with  three  Recollet  missionaries,  arms,  provisions,  merchandise 
and  eight  little  cannon  of  cast-iron  or  brass.15  Finally, 
against  the  opinion  of  his  people,  he  managed  to  ascend  the 
river.  He  set  sail  when  the  wind  was  very  strong,  and  they 
towed  1C  it  in  the  most  difficult  places,  and  so  came  happily  to 
the  entrance  of  Lake  Erie." 

Hennepin  says :  "  Most  of  our  Men  went  ashoar  to  lighten 
our  ships  [sic],  the  better  to  sail  up  the  Lake.  The  wind 
veering  to  the  North-East,  and  the  Ship  being  well  provided, 
we  made  all  the  Sail  we  could,  and  with  the  help  of  Twelve 
Men  who  hall'd  from  the  shoar,  overcame  the  rapidity  of  the 

14  His  words  are:  "  un  foudre  de  vent." 

15  The  original  is  canon  da  fonte,  which  may  be  either  iron  or  brass. 

1°  In  the  original  this  word  is  fouir,  which  means  only,  to  dig.  Margry 
comments  on  it,  and  questions  whether  it  should  signify  (tiler  a  In  prrchf. 
that  is,  was  poled  up  the  stream;  or  whether  it  should  be  regarded  as  a 
copyist's  error  for  touer,  to  tow.  Hennepin's  account,  and  the  conditions 
of  the  river,  as  known,  are  satisfactory  evidence  that  the  Griffon  was 
towed,  along  shore,  past  the  upper  rapids. 


50       AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

Current,  and  got  up  into  the  Lake."  17  While  they  were  wait- 
ing for  a  favorable  wind,  La  Salle  had  his  men  *'  grub  up  some 
land,  and  sow  several  sorts  of  pot-herbs  and  pulse,"  says 
Henncpin,  "  for  the  conveniency  of  those  who  should  settle 
themselves  there,  to  maintain  our  Correspondence  with  Fort 
Frontenac."  The  site  of  this  first  tilled  land  on  the  Niagara 
is  of  some  interest.  Hennepin  says  it  was  on  the  west  side  of 
the  river;  inconvenient,  one  would  suppose,  if  the  men  were 
all  lodged  on  the  east  side. 

No  one  knows  how  the  Griffon  looked.  In  his  first  book 
Hennepin  wrote :  "  This  vessel  was  only  of  about  45  tons 
and  which  we  might  call  an  ambulant  fort."  In  his  second 
work,  14  years  later,  he  spoke  of  her  as  of  "  but  60  tons." 
We  learn  from  Hennepin  that  she  was  a  boat  with  a  keel,  and 
a  deck  under  which  the  men  "  hang'd  their  hammocks."  She 
was  a  sailing  craft,  but  how  she  was  rigged  we  are  nowhere 
told,  nor  whether  she  had  one  mast  or  more  —  though  we  may 
infer  two,  from  an  allusion  to  "  topmasts."  Hennepin  styles 
her  "  ship,"  while  he  calls  the  smaller  craft  on  Lake  Ontario 
"  brigantine  " ;  but  one  would  hardly  be  warranted  in  inferring 
from  this  that  the  Griffon  was  full  ship-rigged.  "  She  carry'd 
five  small  Guns,  two  whereof  were  Brass,  and  three  Harquebuze 
a-crock.18  The  Beakhead  was  adorned  with  a  flying  Griffin, 
and  an  Eagle  above  it ;  and  the  rest  of  the  Ship  had  the  same 
Ornaments  as  Men  of  War  use  to  have  " —  whatever  that  may 
mean. 

This  is  all  the  description  we  have  of  the  first  vessel  on  the 
Lakes  above  the  Falls ;  nothing  of  dimensions,  length,  beam  or 
draft,  nothing  definite  as  to  her  tonnage  or  rig  —  but  she  had 
ornaments  like  a  man-of-war !  Writers  and  artists,  giving 
rein  to  fancy,  have  constructed  various  Griffons,  some  of  them 
elaborate  enough  to  tax  the  resources  of  the  best  shipyards 
of  old  France.  Reason  and  reflection  cannot  accept  these 

"  "New  Discovery,"  Eng.  ed.,  1698.  Garneau  (Bell's  trans.,  I,  261) 
has  the  singular  statement  of  La  Salle:  "  He  has  the  honor  of  founding 
the  town  of  Niagara.  The  vessel  he  huilt  there  he  called  the  Griffin." 
He  elsewhere  says  the  Griffin  was  huilt  "  some  six  miles  above  the  Falls." 

is  Fr.  a  croc,  with  a  prop  or  support. 


AII    I  iiiHiriiicil   "( irill'on  " 

Tli,    I  'nnini,,,,,. sV    I'irhir,    ,,fth>    I'luiit,,-    I  V.v.s>/  ,,/,    l.,,kr   I'.rif 


I- r.  >  in  -i    <;,^.-//   '-;/   t',tf,f,iin    /'..iK-t,,,/.   in   (/,,    Hrltixh    M,/.--r,n 


A  FAMOUS  EPISODE  51 

works  of  the  imagination.  We  know  that  the  boat  was  built 
in  a  hurry,  at  the  Niagara  River  side  by  a  few  workmen,  ham- 
pered by  lack  of  supplies,  lack  of  tools,  of  iron,  of  food  even, 
and  with  none  too  much  zeal  for  their  task.  Crude  beyond 
question  she  must  have  been.  That  she  was  seaworthy  at  all 
is  greatly  to  the  credit  of  the  men  who  built  her.  Some  of 
them  could  evidently  build  better  than  Hennepin  could  de- 
scribe.19 

More  than  one  writer,  beguiled  by  the  undoubted  charm  and 
picturesqueness  of  this  great  adventure,  has  pictured  La 
Salle  and  his  companions  as  sailing  prosperously  and  serenely 
through  a  summer  sea  to  the  delectable  regions  of  the  Detroit. 
They  have  perhaps  overlooked  La  Salle's  own  account  of  diffi- 
culties into  which  they  soon  run.  Lake  Erie,  all  untried 
though  it  was  by  any  craft  larger  than  the  red  man's  canoe, 
was  reputed  not  only  to  lack  harbors,  but  to  be  full  of  shoals 
and  sand-bars.  However  ready  his  reckless  men  may  have 
been,  to  press  on  and  take  chances,  or  how  rebellious,  the 
leader  himself  showed  caution  and  some  knowledge  of  condi- 
tions. It  was,  apparently,  the  first  night  out  from  the  Niagara 
that  the  Griffon  narrowly  escaped  shipwreck.  La  Salic  him- 
self tells  of  it: 

is  In  August,  1879,  there  was  celebrated  at  Grosse  Pointe,  Michigan, 
the  200th  anniversary  of  the  passage  of  the  Griffon:  In  the  historical  ad- 
dress of  Mr.  Bela  Hubbard,  on  that  occasion,  it  is  stated  that  the  Griffon 
"  was  a  two-masted  schooner,  but  of  a  fashion  peculiar  to  that  day,  having 
double  decks,  and  a  high  poop  projected  over  the  stern,  where  was  the 
main  cabin,  and  over  this  rose  another  and  smaller  cabin,  doubtless  for 
the  use  of  the  commander.  The  stern  was  thus  carried  up,  broad  and 
straight,  to  considerable  height.  Bulwarks  protected  the  quarter  deck." 
(Mick  Pioneer  Coll.  Ill,  650.) 

The  printed  program  of  the  day's  exercises  bore  a  picture  of  the  craft 
that  admirably  conformed  to  the  orator's  description;  but  whether  the 
artist  got  his  design  from  the  speaker's  description,  or  the  speaker  merely 
described  the  picture  as  the  artist  drew  it,  is  not  specified.  Certain  it  is, 
that  neither  of  them  gave  any  authority  for  the  data  so  confidently  pre- 
sented. As  conceived  by  Mr.  Herman  T.  Koerner,  an  artist  who  painted  a 
wall  panel  in  the  Historical  Building  at  Buffalo,  the  Griffon  was  not 
schooner-rigged,  but  a  brig  of  the  hermaphrodite  type,  with  yards  and 
square -sails,  even  on  the  jib.  Numerous  other  designs  attest  by  their  variety 
to  the  utter  absence  of  authenticity,  beyond  deductions  of  probabilities 
—  and  some  of  these  are  highly  improbable. 


52       AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

Night  came  on,  and  a  thick  fog  concealed  the  shore,  from  which 
we  supposed  ourselves  some  ten  leagues  distant.  I  heard  breakers 
about  a  league  ahead  of  us.  Everyone  thought  it  was  but  the  ordi- 
nary sound  on  the  lakes  when  the  wind  changes,  which  is  always 
heard  from  the  side  it  comes  from,  and  the  pilot  wished  to  crowd  on 
sail  to  gain  an  anchorage  before  we  stranded  ahead;  but  as  I  knew 
that  these  two  sand  banks  extended  out  very  far,  and  as  I  was  of 
opinion  we  were  near  the  one  which  was  in  fact  just  ahead  of  us,  I 


"Scale  0/fifiles 


Long  Point  Bay,  Lake  Erie. 
Showing  Galince's  route,  1669-70,  and  the  course  of  the  Griffon,  1679. 


ordered,  notwithstanding  everybody,  that  we  change  the  course  and 
bear  east  northeast,  instead  of  as  we  were  going,  west  northwest 
with  a  light  wind  from  the  southeast.  We  sailed  two  or  three  hours, 
sounding  constantly,  without  finding  bottom;  and  still  we  heard  the 
same  noise  ahead  of  us.  They  all  insisted  that  it  was  only  the  wind, 
and  I,  that  it  was  the  sand-bar  which  made  a  circle  and  surrounded 
us  on  the  north  side,  from  west  to  east.  In  fact,  an  hour  later,  we 
suddenly  found  only  three  fathoms.  Everyone  worked  ship,  I  tacked 
and  bore  to  the  southwest,  always  sounding  without  finding  bottom. 


A  FAMOUS  EPISODE  53 

At  length  the  fog  lifted,  my  conviction  proved  true,  and  they  all  saw 
that  they  owed  their  escape  from  danger  to  me.'0 

Following  the  general  trend  of  the  north  shore  the  Griffon 
had  blundered  into  Long  Point  Bay  and  narrowly  escaped 
wreck  on  Long  Point.  This  experience  is  in  a  measure  proof 
that  Tonty  was  not  on  board.  Having  canoed  through  these 
waters  he  would  have  known  the  danger  and  told  of  it. 

La  Salle's  avowed  purpose  on  this  voyage  was  the  explora- 
tion to  its  mouth  of  the  great  river  to  the  westward  of  the 
Lakes.  If,  half  a  dozen  years  before,  he  had  already  found 
his  way  down  the  Ohio,  one  may  naturally  inquire,  why  did  he 
not  follow  that  route,  instead  of  incurring  the  labor  and  ex- 
pense of  building  a  vessel  on  Lake  Eric.  Two  answers  may  be 
made.  He  contemplated  not  only  a  voyage  to  the  Gulf,  but 
an  exploration  of  the  upper  Mississippi  —  though,  as  the  sequel 
shows,  he  never  attempted  this  himself,  but  sent  others. 

A  more  impressive  answer  is,  that  he  sought  to  profit  by  the 
fur  trade  of  the  lake  region.  It  offered  him  a  revenue  for  the 
prosecution  of  his  exploration,  but  it  involved  him  in  difficul- 
ties and  in  a  measure  undermined  his  success. 

20  Letter  of  La  Salle,  Fort  Frontenac,  Aug.  22,  1682.  Margry,  II,  230. 
Parkman  does  not  mention  the  incident. 


CHAPTER  V 

A  DRAMA  OF  DISASTER 

STORY  OF  THE  RASCALS  WHO  ROBBED  LA  SALLE  —  TONTY  THE 
FAITHFUL  —  JACQUES  BOURDON,  A  FINE  FIGURE  IN  NIAGARA 
HISTORY  —  LA  SALLE'S  ACCOUNT  OF  A  LAKE  ONTARIO  TRAGEDY. 

THE  story  of  the  men  who  stole  La  Salle's  goods,  destroyed 
his  buildings  and  deserted  from  his  service,  if  it  could  be  truly 
and  fully  recorded,  would  be  the  rarest  narrative  of  adventure 
the  history  of  the  Great  Lakes  affords.  Much  of  it  belongs 
to  the  region  we  are  studying,  and  something  of  it  should  have 
place  in  these  pages. 

The  loss  of  the  brigantine  on  Lake  Ontario,  which  La  Salle 
ascribed  to  treachery,  forewarned  him  of  what  he  had  to  ex- 
pect from  his  men.  From  the  outset,  there  were  discord  and 
discontent  among  them.  Some  were  Normans,  some  were 
Canadians  —  and  even  at  that  early  day  many  sharp  dis- 
criminations were  made  against  the  habitant.  The  man  whom 
they  had  to  obey,  for  more  than  eight  months  on  the  Niagara, 
was  an  Italian  soldier.  The  priests  were  Flemings  —  natives 
of  the  Spanish  Netherlands.  Such  worthy  men  as  Dautray 
and  Boisrondet  no  doubt  comprehended,  in  a  measure,  the  aims 
and  ambitions  of  their  great  leader,  and  were  zealous  for  ex- 
ploration and  discovery.  Most  of  the  others  thought  more 
of  the  opportunity  to  profit  by  trade  with  the  Indians,  lawful 
or  otherwise ;  and  some  had  no  soul  above  getting  food  and 
their  promised  wage. 

When  the  Griffon  sailed,  she  had  on  board,  according  to  one 
account,1  23  men ;  according  to  another,2  34,  this  perhaps 
taking  into  account  Indian  hunters  and  servants.  Some  of 
the  company  were,  naturally,  men  whom  it  is  not  worth  the 

1  Margry,   II,  31,  where  the  paper  entitled  "  Prt-liminaires  dc   I'explora- 
tion"    states    that    La    Salle    "  s'embarqua    avec    vingt-deux    hommes    pour 
traverser  le  lac  erid." 

2  Hennepin. 

54 


A  DRAMA  OF  DISASTER  55 

student's  thought  to  consider,  yet  others  of  the  baser  sort 
were  destined  to  such  evil  activities  in  our  region  that  record 
should  be  made  of  them.  As  for  the  rest,  among  them  were 
several  of  ability  and  character,  whose  part  in  our  history 
has  been  overshadowed,  if  not  lost,  by  the  deeds  of  their  leader. 

Who  were  they?  From  the  imperfect  and  contradictory 
records,  it  is  not  easy  to  be  conclusive.  We  know  that  La 
Salle  himself  sailed  on  the  Griffon.  As  the  breeze  filled  her 
sails,  and  she  cut  her  cautious  course  through  the  waves  of 
Lake  Erie,  he  must  have  experienced  a  moment  of  exultation, 
rare  in  his  baffled  career,  over  a  long-cherished  purpose  accom- 
plished. 

Was  Tonty  with  him?  Pie  had  gone  on  in  advance  by 
canoe,  with  five  men ;  but  Tonty  himself  is  made  to  say,  in  the 
account  of  La  Salle's  journeys  attributed  to  him,  that  after 
having  gone  the  length  of  Lake  Erie  by  canoe  in  two  days  — 
no  slight  achievement  —  he  returned  to  Niagara  and  sailed 
with  La  Salle  on  August  7th.  Other  and  better  authorities 
indicate  that  he  did  not  sail  on  the  Griff 'on  from  Niagara,  but 
joined  it  in  the  Detroit. 

Tonty  was  in  the  service  of  La  Salle ;  yet  in  many  respects 
his  actual  achievements  surpass  those  of  his  leader,  while  his 
steadfast  and  trustworthy  character  commends  him  to  our 
esteem  and  admiration.  It  was  Tonty,  far  more  than  La 
Salle,  who  gave  personal  attention  to  the  operations  on  the 
Niagara  in  1678-79.  He  it  was  who  built  the  Griffon.  He 
voyaged  the  length  of  Lake  Erie  before  La  Salle  had  ventured 
upon  its  waters  —  unless  one  accepts  the  claims  of  eulogists 
who  profess  to  find  certain  evidence  of  La  Salle's  travels  in 
those  hazy  years  of  1669-72.  When  the  Griffon  sailed,  if 
Tonty  were  aboard,  La  Salle  and  her  pilot  would  have  profited 
by  information  of  the  lake  which  Tonty  picked  up  in  his  swift 
canoe  journey:  that  they  had  need  of  more  we  have  already 
seen.  It  was  to  be  Tonty  who  made  the  establishment  on  the 
Illinois,  of  which  La  Salle  hoped  for  so  much.  WThen,  harassed 
and  impatient,  he  was  exhausting  himself  in  unfruitful  jour- 
neys back  and  forth,  Tonty  held  on.  And  when  most  of  their 
men  turned  thieves  and  traitors,  and  deserted,  Tonty  still  held 


56       AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

on,  sturdy,  resourceful  and  discreet.  When  La  Salle  vanished 
down  the  Mississippi  and  nothing  was  heard  of  him  for  months, 
it  was  Tonty  who  went  far  down  the  unknown  river  in  quest 
of  him.  When  Governor  Denonville  undertook  to  discipline 
the  Iroquois  of  Central  New  York,  in  1687,  it  was  Tonty  who 
came  again  to  the  Niagara,  leading  a  great  war  party  of  Illi- 
nois. He  shared  in  the  campaign,  and  returning  to  the 
Niagara,  saw  Denonville  begin  a  fort  on  the  scene  of  his  own 
activities  of  eight  years  before.  \Ve  have  no  record  of  his 
presence  on  our  river,  after  that ;  but  from  what  we  know  of 
his  career,  here  and  elsewhere,  the  statement  is  warranted  that 
of  all  the  men  who  shared  in  the  varied  drama  enacted  in 
America  by  the  soldiers  and  servitors  of  France,  none  played 
his  part  with  greater  sincerity  and  credit,  none  is  more  en- 
titled to  the  respect  and  admiration  of  posterity,  than  the 
Italian  knight,  Henri  de  Tonty. 

Three  Franciscan  missionaries  there  were  on  board :  Fath- 
ers Louis  Hennepin,  Zenobe  Mcmbre  and  Gabriel  de  la  Ribourde. 
The  first  named  was  to  have  his  share  of  adventures  and  to  as- 
sert himself  in  years  to  come  as  the  historian  of  the  expedition, 
but  with  such  conceit,  exaggerations  and  mendacities  that  the 
student  is  now  amused,  now  exasperated  and  at  all  times  per- 
plexed by  the  uncertainty  of  pages  which  should  give  us  a 
clear  record.  Father  Ribourde,  aged  64,  was  to  die  a  few 
months  later  in  an  Illinois  wilderness  by  the  hand  of  a  Kicka- 
poo  savage.  Father  Membre's  destiny  it  was  to  share  in  La 
Salle's  unhappy  fortunes  to  the  very  end  and  to  become  the 
most  trustworthy  historian  of  his  later  years. 

Father  Watteati  and  Sergeant  La  Fleur,  with  a  few  soldiers, 
remained  on  the  Niagara.  The  Canadian,  Charon,  returned 
to  Fort  Frontenac,  and  so,  apparently,  did  Anthony  Brassart, 
the  interpreter. 

Fifteen  of  La  Salle's  men  had  gone  west  by  canoe  before 
he  began  operations  on  the  Niagara.  Five  others  had  accom- 
panied Tonty  to  the  Detroit,  also  by  canoe.  The  names  of 
the  men  in  these  advance  parties  are  not  recorded  except  when, 
as  deserters,  they  reappear  at  Mackinac,  on  the  Niagara  and 
Lake  Ontario.  Some,  therefore,  whose  names  are  known,  may 


A  DRAMA  OF  DISASTER  57 

have  been  in  the  advance  parties,  or  may  have  sailed  on  the 
Griffon. 

There  was  the  pilot,  Luc,  fated  to  perish  with  ship  and  crew 
of  five  among  the  islands  of  Lake  Michigan,  in  trying  to  navi- 
gate the  Griffon  back  to  the  Niagara. 

Among  the  more  trusty  who  stood  with  La  Salle  as  he  sailed 
into  Lake  Erie  was  Jacques  Bourdon,  the  Sieur  Dautray,  son 
of  Jean  Bourdon,  first  procurer-general  of  Quebec;  "always 
very  faithful,"  La  Salle  said  of  him.  Dautray  is  to  be  right- 
hand  man,  and  serve  him  well,  on  many  occasions.  Here  too, 
were  Andre  Henault ;  Collin ;  Michael  Accault  and  Antoine 
Auguel,  otherwise  known  as  Du  Gay,  and  because  he  was  from 
Picardy  called  "  Le  Picard  ";  these  two,  with  Father  Hennepin, 
were  to  explore  the  upper  Mississippi.  In  La  Salle's  service 
were  also  the  Parisian,  the  Sieur  de  Boisrondct ;  La  Chapellc ; 
Noel  Le  Blanc ;  Pierre  You ;  L'Esperance,  La  Salle's  servant ; 
and  one  or  more  Indian  hunters. 

It  was  a  strangely  mixed  lot :  a  few  gentlemen,  soldiers  who 
had  proved  themselves  in  service,  missionary  priests,  crafts- 
men, mechanics  and  dubious  habitants  who  only  needed  oppor- 
tunity to  turn  villain.  By  no  means  least  in  evidence  in  the 
motley  crew  was  Moyse  Hillaret,  ship  carpenter.  Another 
carpenter,  Francois  Sauvin,  was  called  La  Roze ; 3  a  black- 
smith, Le  Mcilleur,  is  oftcner  mentioned  as  La  Forge;  others 
were  La  Violettc ;  Martin  Chartier;  Duplessis,  Jacques 
Monjault;  La  Rousseliere;  Baribault;  Lacroix.  Highly 
poetic,  some  of  the  names,  but  a  more  rascally  and  unfaithful 
crew  never  sailed. 

Moyse  Hillaret,  ship  carpenter,  was  a  ring-leader  for  mis- 
chief from  the  first.  He  and  his  fellow  workmen  were  afraid  of 
the  Indians,  and  when  the  brigantine  bringing  previsions  was 
wrecked  on  Lake  Ontario,  they  were  greatly  depressed  by  fear 
of  starvation.  One  can  readily  picture  them  loudly  discussing 
the  situation  and  caring  less  for  exploration  than  for  their 
dinner.  They  were  in  fit  mood  to  listen  to  the  proposals  of 
"a  villian  amongst  us,"  as  Hennepin  has  it:  "That  pitiful 
Fellow  has  several  times  attempted  to  run  away  from  us  into 
3  So  spoiled  in  the  documents.  Marjrry,  II. 


58       AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

New  York,  and  would  have  been  likely  to  pervert  our  Carpen- 
ters, had  I  not  confirm'd  them  in  their  good  resolution,  by  the 
Exhortations  I  us'd  to  make  every  Holy-day  after  Divine 
Service ;  in  which  I  represented  to  them,  that  the  Glory  of  God 
was  concern'd  in  our  Undertaking,  besides  the  Good  and  Ad- 
vantage of  our  Christian  Colonies ;  and  therefore  exhorted 
them  to  redouble  their  diligence,  in  order  to  free  ourselves 
from  all  those  Inconveniences  and  Apprehensions  we  then  lay 
under."  Hennepin  never  underestimates  his  own  importance 
and  influence;  but  as,  to  this  day,  the  French-Canadian  priest 
has  a  great  hold  and  restraining  influence  on  even  the  most 
lawless  and  perverse  young  men  of  his  parish,  so  Father  Henne- 
pin undoubtedly  did  help  to  keep  the  faint-hearted  and  false- 
hearted to  their  task  on  the  banks  of  the  Niagara.  More 
potent  yet  was  the  wilderness  itself.  Only  a  brave  and  re- 
sourceful man  dared  run  away. 

As  for  "  the  villian  amongst  us "  of  whom  he  writes,  he 
may  have  meant  Noel  Le  Blanc,  who,  according  to  Tonty, 
made  great  trouble.  Whoever  he  was,  he  takes  his  unenviable 
place  in  history  as  the  first  labor  agitator  of  the  Lower  Lakes. 

The  fortunes  of  the  15  who  had  gone  up  the  Lakes  in  the 
autumn,  with  a  rich  quantity  of  La  Salle's  goods,  must  often 
have  been  discussed  in  the  shanties  by  the  Niagara.  Men 
who  lightly  regarded  the  rights  of  ownership,  may  well  have 
envied  these  adventurers  their  opportunity,  and  have  been 
disposed  to  act  for  themselves,  whenever  they  could  do  so 
with  profit  or  safety.  Of  loyalty  to  La  Salle  among  the 
workmen  there  was  none. 

When  Tonty  rejoined  La  Salle  on  board  the  Griffon,  in  the 
Detroit,  he  brought  the  unhappy  news  that  most  of  the  advance 
party  of  15  had  deserted,  taking  La  Salle's  goods  for  their 
own  use ;  and  when  La  Salle  set  foot  ashore  at  Mackinac  he 
was  surprised  to  find  some  of  his  men  there,  whom  he  supposed 
had  gone  on  long  before  to  the  Illinois.  They  told  him  that 
they  had  been  kept  back  by  reports  which  had  reached  them 
since  their  departure  from  Fronhenac.  "  They  had  been  told 
that  his  undertaking  was  chimerical,  that  his  barque  would 
never  reach  Mackinac,  that  they  had  been  sent  to  certain  ruin, 


A  DRAMA  OF  DISASTER  59 

and  several  other  like  reports,  which  had  discouraged  and  de- 
bauched most  of  their  comrades,  whom  they  had  been  un- 
able to  persuade  to  continue  the  journey,  and  that  six  of  them, 
Saint  Croix,  Miniine,  Le  Barbier,  Poupart,  Hunaut  [or  He- 
nault]  and  Roussel  (called  La  Rousseliere),  had  deserted, 
stolen  and  carried  off  nearly  4000  livres  of  merchandize ;  and 
that  the  others  had  wasted  or  used  for  their  own  subsistance  at 
Mackinac,  where  provisions  were  very  dear,  more  than  1300 
livres."  4 

Four  of  these  men  La  Salle  arrested  at  Mackinac.  Tonty 
captured  two  at  Sault  Ste.  Marie  —  Renault  and  Roussel ;  but 
was  delayed  so  long  by  adverse  winds  that  La  Salle  went  on 
without  him.  Some  of  the  advance  party  of  15  appear  to 
have  been  taken  along,  a  new  source  of  treachery  and  danger. 
Others  escaped  and  vanished  in  the  wilderness ;  possibly  mak- 
ing their  way  to  the  English,  as  many  renegade  Frenchmen 
did ;  wandering  to  distant  tribes,  or  meeting  the  early  death 
which  is  usually  the  fate  of  the  violent  and  the  outlaw. 

La  Salle  and  his  uncertain  following,  good  and  bad,  made 
their  way  to  the  Illinois  River,  where  a  fort  was  built  and  a 
boat  begun  for  exploration  of  the  great  river.  With  these 
undertakings,  elsewhere  so  fully  and  ably  recorded,  the  pres- 
ent work  is  not  concerned.  From  Green  Bay,  in  September, 
the  Griffon  had  been  dispatched  for  Niagara,  but  she  only 
reached  the  Port  of  Missing  Ships.  Loaded  with  furs  and 
still  having  on  board  a  large  amount  of  the  goods  and  material 
which  had  been  put  into  her  before  she  sailed  from  the  Niagara, 
her  loss  was  a  staggering  blow  to  La  Salle. 

In  March,  1680,  not  knowing  of  his  loss,  he  set  out  with 
four  French  companions  and  an  Indian  hunter  for  Fort  Fron- 
tenac.  lie  needed  supplies  for  his  men,  material  for  the  new 
boat,  and  was  anxious  to  know  the  fate  of  the  Griffon.  The 
story  of  the  Lakes,  rich  as  it  is  in  adventure,  has  no  episode 
surpassing  this  in  hardihood. 

By  canoe  and  on  foot,  they  came  across  Southern  Michigan, 
but  not  without  grave  experiences.  Reaching  the  Detroit,  La 
Salle  dispatched  two  of  his  men,  by  canoe,  to  Mackinac,  to 

*"  Relation  officials."     Margry,  I,  449. 


60       AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

learn  if  possible,  the  fate  of  the  Griffon.  With  his  faithful 
hunter  and  two  white  companions,  he  crossed  the  Detroit  on  a 
raft.  Let  his  own  narrative  a  tell  what  ensued : 

We  followed  on  foot  the  shore  of  Lake  Erie  until,  the  continued 
rains  and  the  great  thaw  having  flooded  all  the  woods,  the  Indian 
and  one  of  my  men  succumbed  to  exhaustion  due  to  constant  walking 
through  water,  so  that,  at  30  leagues  from  the  fall  of  Conty  6  they 
were  taken  with  a  very  violent  fever,  inflammation  of  the  chest  and 
a  vomiting  of  blood,  which  obliged  me,  with  the  man  who  remained 
well,  to  build  a  canoe  for  carrying  them.  This  we  did  in  two  days ; 
and  the  day  after  Easter  I  arrived  at  the  fall  of  Conty,  where  I 
found  still  other  causes  for  anxiety,  learning,  from  two  of  my  men 
who  had  wintered  there,  of  the  loss  of  the  ship  in  which  were  the 
goods  which  you  and  M.  Plet  were  sending  here,  at  least  the  great 
part  of  them ;  the  return  to  France  of  the  men  who  were  to  come  for 
the  Illinois  establishment,  the  disturbance  which  my  brother  had 
caused  in  my  affairs,  and  the  urgency  of  those  from  whom  I  had 
borrowed  a  quantity  of  goods  payment  for  which  I  could  easily  have 
arranged,  if  those  to  whom  I  entrusted  them  had  not  stolen  them. 

But  that  which  gave  me  the  greatest  grief,  was,  to  have  no  news 
of  my  barque,  by  the  arrival  of  which  I  would  have  remedied  every- 
thing; and  the  loss  of  which  was  not  only  considerable  because  of 
the  value  of  its  contents,  which  with  the  hull  and  rigging  of  the  boat 
amounted  to  more  than  10,000  crowns,7  but  because  it  made  impos- 
sible the  execution  of  my  enterprise  by  reason  of  the  distance  and 
the  cost  of  transport  by  canoe  to  places  so  distant;  besides  the  rig- 
ging and  ship  fittings,  and  quantity  of  provisions,  arms,  ammuni- 
tion, tools,  iron,  goods  and  utensils  which  were  cared  for  by  seven 
or  eight  men  in  a  cabin  above  the  fall  of  Conty,  where  they  had  been 
carried  with  great  cost,  and  where  they  were  cared  for  during  the 
winter,  running  risk  of  being  stolen,  as  indeed  a  part  of  them  were, 
and  not  being  able  to  care  for  them,  while  they  were  in  shipment, 
except  at  great  expense. 

?'  Letter  of  La  Salic,  in  Mar  pry,  II,  (53-64. 

0  That  is,  Niagara.  La  Salle  had  called  his  fort  at  the  mouth  of  the 
river  Tort  de  Conty;  and  the  name  of  this  prince  was  for  a  long  time 
applied  to  Lake  Erie;  but  so  far  as  observed,  the  letter  here  quoted  from 
is  the  only  record  in  which  the  great  cataract  is  also  styled  "  Conty." 

"La  Salle's  word  is  escux  (modern  spelling,  ecu}.  Reckoning  the  crown 
at  three  francs,  he  estimated  his  loss  on  the  Griffon  at  more  than  $0,000; 
but  the  purchasing  power  of  the  franc  was  probably  greater  in  La  Salle's 
day  than  in  ours. 


A  DRAMA  OF  DISASTER  61 

This  was  the  consolation  which  I  found  on  my  arrival  after  a 
journey  of  450  leagues.  There  still  remained  70  before  reaching 
Fort  Frontenac.  The  men  who  had  attended  me  not  being  able  to 
go  on,  I  took  three  fresh  men  from  the  fall  of  Conty;  and,  the  rain 
being  incessant  until  May  10th,  1  did  not  reach  Frontenac  until 
the  Gth. 

At  the  worst  season  of  the  year  for  such  an  undertaking, 
La  Salle  had  journeyed,  in  part  by  canoe,  but  mostly  on  foot, 
more  than  a  thousand  miles  in  (j5  days,  including  numerous 
detentions.  It  was  a  wonderful  thing  to  do.  He  was  in  his 
,'JTth  year  —  at  the  zenith  of  physical  vigor.  If  we  knew 
nothing  of  him  save  this  achievement,  we  could  picture  him  as 
of  exceptional  determination  and  physical  endurance. 

As  he  was  first  to  sail  into  the  West,  from  the  Niagara,  so 
was  he  the  first  white  man  to  arrive  at  the  Niagara,  from  the 
West. 

On  his  way,  at  the  mouth  of  the  Miami,  he  had  hoped  for 
news  of  the  Griffon.  Later,  on  the  Detroit,  he  still  cherished 
a  hope  of  finding  her.  It  was  not  until  he  stood  once  more  on 
the  bank  of  the  Niagara  where  she  had  been  built,  and  found 
no  trace  of  her  or  her  men,  but  only  news  of  loss  and  misfor- 
tune crowned  by  misfortune,  that  he  abandoned  all  hope  of 
this  venture,  on  which  he  had  staked  so  much.  No  wonder 
that  he  writes  in  irony  of  the  "  consolation  "  that  awaited  him 
there.  We  have  seen  him  in  what  may  well  have  been  a  mo- 
ment of  exultation,  as  he  sailed  out  of  the  Niagara  into  the 
untried  lake.  Now,  eight  months  later,  again  on  the  Niagara, 
with  his  ventures  gone  wrong,  a  victim  of  knavery,  he  would 
appear  a  pathetic  figure,  but  for  the  fact  that  there  is  nothing 
in  word  or  act  to  indicate  that  his  spirit  was  broken.  How- 
ever some  of  his  deeds  in  later  years  may  be  construed,  there 
is  nothing  throughout  the  time  of  his  activities  on  the  Niagara 
and  adjoining  lakes,  that  does  not  breathe  of  fine  resolution 
and  undaunted  courage. 

La  Salle's  companions,  in  this  hard  journey,  were  Dautray, 
Henault,  La  Violette,  Collin,  and  his  Indian  hunter.  On  his 
way.  at  the  little  post  at  the  mouth  of  the  St.  Joseph,  he  found 
Chapelle  and  Le  Blanc,  whom  lie  had  sent  to  Mackinac  in 


62  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

search  of  the  Griffon.  They  were  now  returning.  That  they 
had  not  deserted,  speaks  well  for  their  loyalty,  up  to  this  time. 

Which  were  the  two  men  dispatched  from  the  Detroit  to 
Mackinac,  is  not  known,  but  Dautray  was  one  who  came 
through  to  the  Niagara,  enduring  the  fatigues  of  the  journey 
better  than  any  one  save  La  Salle  himself.  Taking  three  of 
the  men  who  had  spent  the  winter  at  Niagara,  to  go  on  with 
him  to  Frontenac,  La  Salle  sent  Dautray  back  with  four  men, 
to  Tonty. 

Much  has  been  written  of  the  hardihood  of  La  Salle;  yet 
here  is  his  faithful  follower,  Jacques  Bourdon,  the  Sieur  Dau- 
tray, who  had  shared  in  his  leader's  most  adventurous  exploit, 
setting  out  at  once  from  the  Niagara  to  retrace  all  those  wil- 
derness leagues  until  he  shall  rejoin  Tonty  on  the  distant  Illi- 
nois. His  name  appears  in  the  documents  sometimes  as  Jean, 
sometimes  as  Jacques.  There  were  two  brothers  bearing  these 
names,  sons  of  Jean  Bourdon,  Sieur  de  St.  Francis.  The 
father  was  a  man  of  standing  in  the  Quebec  colony,  and  was  a 
public  prosecutor  at  the  time  his  son  Jacques  joined  La  Salle. 
The  son  Jean  was  styled  Sieur  de  Dombourg,  and  Jacques  the 
Sieur  D'Autray  (or  Dautray),  from  seigniories  which  they 
received  from  their  father.  In  September,  1672,  Count  Fron- 
tenac granted  a  passport  to  Father  Crepieul,  Jesuit,  the  Sieur 
Dautray  and  others,  to  trade  with  the  Indians  and  to  winter 
at  Lake  St.  John,  "  about  70  leagues  above  Tadousac.8  Jacques 
is  said  to  have  been  born  at  Quebec  in  1637.  He  joined 
La  Salle  in  1675 ;  shared  in  the  preparatory  work  on  the 
Niagara,  and  sailed  on  the  Griffon  in  1679.  He  was  to  have 
many  grim  adventures  in  the  West ;  was  to  be  one  of  four  who 
accompanied  La  Salle  in  his  search  for  Tonty  in  November, 
1680  °  and  one  of  three  who  first  discovered  and  passed  through 
the  mouths  of  the  Mississippi.  When  in  April,  1682,  La  Salle 
found  himself  at  the  delta  of  the  great  river,  he  followed  the 
channel  to  the  west,  Tonty  took  the  middle  channel,  and  Dau- 
tray explored  the  eastern  pass.  In  the  culmination  of  the 
great  adventure,  the  Canadian  Jacques  Bourdon,  Sieur  Dau- 

s  Paris  Docs.,  IX,  99.5. 

'•>  The  others  were  Renault,  Pierre  You  and  an  Indian  hunter. 


A  DRAMA  OF  DISASTER  63 

tray,  shared  equally  with  La  Salle  and  Tonty.  Little  is  re- 
corded of  him,  but  that  little  is  all  good.  His  deeds  and  his 
fidelity  entitle  him  to  remembrance  in  the  annals  of  the  Lakes 
and  the  Niagara.  His  rank  prior  to  engaging  with  La  Salle 
was  that  of  lieutenant,  and  his  service  was  in  the  first  company 
of  troops  maintained  in  Canada  by  the  Minister  of  Marine  and 
Colonies.  In  1687  he  accompanied  Tonty  in  Denonville's  cam- 
paign against  the  Iroquois,  a  service  that  brought  him  again  to 
the  Niagara.  After  that  affair  he  went  down  to  Quebec,  then 
returned  to  Montreal,  planning  to  return  to  Fort  St.  Louis 
of  the  Illinois,  where  he  had  "  house  and  seigniory  " ;  but  he 
passed  the  winter  in  Montreal.  In  the  spring  of  1688,  having 
escorted  a  party  to  Frontenac,  he  was  returning  when  he  was 
killed  by  the  Iroquois.  Such,  in  brief,  was  the  career  and  the 
fate  of  the  man  who,  after  Tonty,  stood  closest  to  La  Salle ;  a 
man  who  shared,  and  merited,  the  confidence  and  affection  of 
his  leader. 

Dautray  was  the  first  man,  after  La  Salle,  to  leave  the 
Niagara  for  the  West.  He  filled  two  canoes  with  arms  and 
provisions,  and  with  three  soldiers  who  had  spent  the  winter  on 
the  Niagara  —  La  Violctte,  Dulignon  and  Pierre  You,  and 
a  servant  of  La  Salle  called  La  Brie,  paddled  up  the  river  and 
followed  the  north  shore  of  Erie  to  the  Detroit.  He  was  di- 
rected by  La  Salle  to  pick  up  and  take  along  with  him  two  sol- 
diers, Nicolas  Crevel  and  Andre  Henault,  who  with  Jacques 
Messier  had  been  sent  to  Mackinac.  At  Niagara  La  Salle 
and  Dautray  had  learned  that  an  Iroquois  war  party  was 
about  setting  out  for  the  Illinois  and  it  was  desired  to  forewarn 
Tonty.  Dautray  pressed  on  and  joined  Tonty  at  Fort  Creve- 
coeur ;  while  Crevel  and  Messier,  with  Laurent,  bearing  a  mes- 
sage from  Tonty  to  La  Salle,  telling  of  the  thefts  and  deser- 
tions from  Fort  Crevecocur,  did  not  return  to  that  point  with 
Dautray,  but  hastened  eastward  until,  at  Fort  Frontenac,  they 
found  La  Salle  loading  his  brigantino  with  new  supplies  for 
the  Illinois. 

At  Niagara,  La  Sulk1  had  become  convinced  of  the  loss  of 
the  Griffon.  At  Frontrnac,  more  heart-breaking  news  was  to 
reach  him.  On  Julv  5^d,  three  of  his  men  arrived  with  a 


64       AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

message  from  Tonty.  They  had  evidently  followed  the  route 
of  La  Salle,  Dautray  and  others,  across  Michigan,  down  Lake 
Erie  to  Niagara.  How  many  of  these  intrepid  and  wonder- 
fully quick  "  voyages  "  those  old  days  saw !  Tonty  had  dis- 
patched four  men,  but  on  the  way  one  had  either  got  lost  or 
deserted.  On  the  day  named,  as  La  Salle  was  busy  loading  his 
brigantine  with  goods  for  Tonty's  relief,  Jacques  Messier, 
Nicolas  Crevel  and  Nicolas  Laurent  (who  is  also  called  La 
Chapelle)  appeared  and  gave  him  a  letter  from  Tonty.  It 
told  him  that  Moyse  Hillaret  and  others,  who  were  supposed 
to  be  building  the  vessel  in  which  he  planned  to  proceed  with 
his  exploration,  had  stolen  what  goods  they  could  lay  hands 
on,  and  run  off. 

All  those  months  of  toil  on  the  Niagara,  all  those  years  of 
planning  and  outlay,  had  gone  for  naught.  The  great  under- 
taking was  a  failure. 

On  a  day  in  the  early  summer  of  1680  several  canoes  made 
their  unaccustomed  way  out  of  Lake  Erie  and  down  the  swift 
Niagara.  They  were  beached  above  the  fall,  on  the  American 
side.  Of  the  men  who  stepped  ashore,  a  number  were  French. 
Ragged  and  unshorn,  foul  and  half  starved,  they  had  made  their 
way  back  from  the  ruined  Fort  Crevecceur  on  the  Illinois.  The 
leader  of  the  disreputable  band  was  Moyse  Hillaret,  La  Salle's 
master  ship-builder.  With  him  were  Noel  Le  Blanc  and  Fran- 
9013  Sauvin  ("La  Roze"),  ship  carpenters,  and  the  black- 
smith Jean  Le  Meilleur  ("La  Forge"),  hero  of  the  episode  of 
the  murderous  Seneca  and  the  red-hot  iron.  They  were  a 
quartette  of  precious  rascals,  who  seem  to  have  hung  together 
in  acts  of  villainy  from  the  outset,  and  who  might  very  well 
have  been  hanged  together,  with  wholesome  justice.  With 
them,  or  joining  them  soon  were  other  renegades:  Jacques 
Richon,  Jean  La  Croix,  Petit-Bled,  Martin  Chartier,  Bois- 
dardenne,  Jacques  Monjault,  Pierre  Poupart,  Jean  Roussel, 
Nicolas  Duplessis,  Baribault,  all  deserters  from  La  Salle's 
service;  and  the  outlaw  Turcot,  a  fugitive  from  justice,  a  thief 
and  assassin,  who  ten  years  before  had  fled  into  the  wilderness. 
Just  where  the  men  from  the  West  picked  him  up  is  not  clear, 
but  they  were  together  on  Lake  Ontario,  if  not  on  the  Niagara. 


A  DRAMA  OF  DISASTER  65 

Led  on  by  Ilillaret,  they  broke  into  La  Salle's  little  store- 
house above  the  falls,  where,  finding  a  cask  of  wine,  they 
broached  and  drank  it  —  not  a  surprising  act,  under  the  cir- 
cumstances. Ilillaret  helped  himself  to  a  quantity  of  cloth 
and  other  articles.  Everything  that  had  been  stored  there,  of 
any  value,  was  appropriated.  Then  the  canoes  were  portaged 
to  the  lower  river  and  the  thieves  took  their  way  into  Lake  On- 
tario, where  they  separated  into  two  parties,  eight  of  them, 
including  Richon  and  Lemirc,  carrying  a  quantity  of  La  Salle's 
furs,  following  the  south  shore  in  the  hope  of  reaching  Albany ; 
the  others,  numbering  about  a  do/cn,  crossing  to  the  north 
shore,  by  which  they  hoped  to  gain  the  St.  Lawrence  and 
Montreal. 

Messier  and  Laurent  reached  La  Salic,  at  Frontcnac,  July 
22nd  and  gave  him  Tonty's  letter,  with  the  news  of  the  destruc- 
tion of  Crcvecoeur,  and  the  desertion  of  all  the  men.  One 
questions  how  it  happened  that  these  messengers  and  the  run- 
away thieves  had  not  fallen  in  with  each  other  on  the  way  down 
the  Lakes,  as  they  probably  all  came  by  the  Niagara  route. 
La  Salle  may  well  have  been  stunned  by  this  new  proof 
of  calamity,  but  instead,  he  was  roused  to  righteous  wrath. 
He  at  once  took  nine  men  aboard  the  barque  which  he  had  been 
loading  with  supplies  for  Tonty.  His  own  account  of  what 
followed  deserves  place  in  the  annals  of  Lake  Ontario : 

I  sailed  at  once  in  my  barque,  with  nine  men  to  seek  them  [the 
deserters]  and  ordered  1  f>  others  to  follow  me,  but  they  were  unable 
to  come  on,  the  wind  several  times  compelling  even  me  to  return. 

Finally,  on  August  2ml,  I  anchored  at  the  head  of  an  island  on  one 
side  of  which  they  would  have  to  pass,  to  go  to  New  York,10  as  some 
few  have  done.  About  four  in  the  afternoon  I  saw  a  canoe  in  which 
were  two  of  my  people,  who,  having  fallen  in  with  the  deserters, 
hastened  day  and  night  to  tell  me  that  they  were  20  in  number,  and 
that,  not  content  with  what  they  had  done  on  the  Illinois,  they  had 
destroyed  the  redoubt  which  I  had  left  on  the  river  Miami,  had  taken 
the  heaver  which  I  had  deposited  at  Mackinac,  and  pillaged  the 
store-house  above  the  fall  of  Contv:  that  they  had  separated  into 
two  bands,  that  eight  had  taken  the  route  for  New  York  and  12  that 

10  "A  la  ~XouvcUr-HaUam1c." 


66  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

for  Fort  Frontenac;  resolved,  if  they  encountered  me,  to  kill  me 
and  to  fire  only  on  me;  that  they  could  not  be  far  away  and  were 
coming  in  two  canoes,  six  in  each. 

I  immediately  sent  these  two  habitants  on  to  the  fort  with  orders 
that  every  one  there  should  arm  and  mount  guard  at  three  different 
passes,  so  that,  if  the  marauders  escaped  me  by  night,  they  would  be 
arrested  by  the  others.  I  left  the  barque  with  five  well-armed  men, 
and  went  by  the  other  side  of  the  island,  which  is  five  leagues  long, 
to  discover  their  fire  at  night.  I  continued  three  leagues  further, 
and  at  daybreak  was  at  the  end  of  a  traverse  1X  called  Okoui,  where 
I  saw  two  canoes  coming  straight  towards  us,  as  the  woods  near  us 
prevented  them  from  seeing  us. 

When  they  were  half  a  league  or  so  from  us,  I  took  after  them, 
and  as  their  two  canoes  were  separated  some  distance,  we  came  up 
to  the  first,  in  which  were  five  men.  I  had  ordered  my  people,  in 
giving  chase  to  these  canoes  always  to  follow  in  a  line  (en  queue}, 
because  that  would  lessen  their  danger;  and,  in  case  of  resistance,  to 
bring  down  the  head  man ;  because,  the  Governor  being  dead,  as  they 
cannot  change  places  in  these  canoes,  they  can  do  no  more  than  turn, 
and  cannot  fire  accurately  nor  even  at  all  without  turning  the  canoe. 

Overtaking  them,  I,  with  gun  ready  to  fire,  ordered  the  rascals  to 
come  with  me ;  and  when  my  two  men  raised  their  guns,  they  had  to 
submit.  I  took  away  their  arms  and  put  every  thing,  with  their 
provisions  and  baggage,  in  my  canoe,  and  then  attacked  their  second 
canoe,  which  yielded  readily,  having  only  two  men,  the  five  others 
having  made  another  canoe,  which  lagged  behind  and  which  I  was 
told  should  arrive  the  next  day. 

The  prisoners  acknowledged  to  me  all  that  I  have  been  told  by 
the  two  habitants.  I  put  them  in  prison,  at  the  fort,  and  set  out  at 
once  to  catch  the  others,  about  four  in  the  afternoon.  At  six  in  the 
evening,  I  saw  a  canoe  a  league  away.  I  made  for  it,  but  as  it  was 
only  half  a  league  from  land,  and  I  a  league  and  a  half,  before  I 
could  prevent,  it  gained  a  point,  where  they  landed,  but  around 
which,  for  the  distance  of  a  league,  it  was  impossible  to  set  foot 
ashore  because  it  was  a  steep  rock  at  the  foot  of  which  the  waves 
of  the  lake  beat.  I  drew  near,  however,  within  gunshot  and  saw 
that  there  were  five  deserters,  and  thieves  who  waited,  each  behind 

11  Two  very  common  words  in  the  old  French  records  of  the  Lakes  are 
portage,  a  crossing  by  land,  .and  traverse,  a  crossing  by  water.  The  voyage 
through  Lake  Ontario,  from  Fort  Frontenac  to  the  Niagara,  is  often  called 
la  grande  traverse.  Modern  English  has  adopted  the  former  word,  but  not 
the  latter. 


A  DRAMA  OF  DISASTER  67 

a  tree,  and  as  we  afterwards  learned,  with  their  guns  loaded  with 
three  balls.  I  could  scarce  restrain  my  men  who  wished  to  land, 
openly;  but  as  those  who  paddled  my  canoe  did  not  wish  to  go 
nearer,  through  concern  for  me,  I  on  my  part  would  not  permit  them 
to  expose  themselves,  but  remained  with  four,  guns  ready,  to  pre- 
vent the  runaways  from  embarking,  while  I  sent  four  others  to  land 
at  a  distance  and  circle  round  in  the  woods  behind  the  thieves. 
They  followed  them  by  land,  with  guns  ready;  but  the  canoe  going 
too  fast  for  them,  my  people  made  landing  a  league  away,  but  night 
coming  on,  they  had  to  reembark  and  return  along  shore  to  land 
nearer  the  cabin  of  the  runaways,  fearing  that  if  they  came  by 
night  through  the  woods  from  a  distance,  the  noise  of  rotten  wood 
and  branches  snapping  under  their  feet  would  make  known  their 
approach. 

They  had  not  gone  far  when  they  encountered  those  they  sought, 
who  had  embarked  without  our  seeing  them,  the  night  being  very 
dark.  Having  ordered  them  two  or  three  times  to  stop,  and  seeing 
that  on  the  contrary  they  put  themselves  on  the  defensive,  my  men 
charged,  killing  two  and  capturing  the  three  others  whom  they 
brought  to  me  and  whom  I  put  in  irons  [at  the  fort],  until  the 
arrival  of  Count  Frontenac,  who  was  expected  soon. 

La  Salle  goes  on  to  tell  how,  the  next  day,  he  set  out  in  pur- 
suit of  those  who  had  taken  the  south  shore  route,  for  the  New 
York  colony.  Head  winds  and  heavy  seas  delayed  him  so  long 
that  he  gave  up  the  chase.  Leaving  orders  with  Sergeant  La 
Fleur  to  watch  for  them,  should  they  reappear  in  the  lake, 
La  Salle  completed  his  preparations.  Undaunted  by  the  fail- 
ure and  losses  of  the  year  past,  he  now  made  a  new  start,  with 
plans  modified  by  experience  and  the  exigencies  of  his  situa- 
tion. 

There  are  different  accounts,  seemingly  at  variance,  of  the 
route  he  now  took.  Father  Membre  explicitly  states  that  La 
Salic  left  Fort  Frontenac  in  his  barque,  July  23,  1680,  but 
was  so  detained  on  Lake  Ontario  that  he  did  not  reach  "  the 
straits  of  Lake  Conty  [i.  c.,  the  Niagara]  till  the  close  of  the 
month  of  August.  Everything,"  continues  the  priest, 
"  seemed  to  oppose  his  undertaking.  lie  embarked  in  the  be- 
ginning of  September  on  Lake  de  Conty." 

Parkman,   relying  on   a   letter   of  La   Salle,  says   that   "  he 


68  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

ascended  the  river  Humber ;  crossed  to  Lake  Simcoe,  and  thence 
descended  the  Severn  to  the  Georgian  Bay."  Had  the  his- 
torian made  further  citation  from  what  is  perhaps  the  most 
valuable  of  the  La  Salle  documents,  at  least  for  this  part  of 
his  career,  he  would  have  cleared  up  the  seeming  contradiction. 
La  Salle,  as  usual,  divided  his  forces;  went  himself  with  12  men 
by  the  Simcoe  route,  but  sent  the  others  with  the  heavier  freight, 
by  Niagara  and  Lake  Erie.  The  blacksmith,  two  sailors,  two 
soldiers  and  a  rope-maker,  with  boatmen  and  hunters,  came 
through  the  Niagara;  while  La  Salle,  Dautray,  a  surgeon, 
three  soldiers,  two  sawyers,  two  masons,  and  two  laborers 
undertook  the  Simcoe  route,  which,  though  shorter,  was  more 
difficult  for  the  transportation  of  heavy  goods,  because  of  the 
long  portage.12  The  Niagara  party  soon  lagged  behind. 
They  carried  iron,  hemp,  tar,  sails  and  tools,  300  pounds  of 
lead,  powder  and  guns.  There  were  always  the  winds  of  Lake 
Erie  to  reckon  with ;  and  although  they  had  left  Frontenac  be- 
fore their  leader,13  yet  La  Salle  reached  Mackinac,  and  lingered 
there,  and  went  on,  before  they  came. 

Noel  Le  Blanc,  apparently  reconciled,  was  again  with  La 
Salle.  The  explorer  was  too  great  to  be  vindictive  —  and 
boat-builders  were  hard  to  find.  There  had  been,  also,  a  re- 
conciliation and  new  agreement  with  Moyse  Hillaret. 

La  Salle's  course  towards  his  recalcitrant  followers,  was 
magnanimous.  We  find  no  record  of  attempts  at  punishments ; 
there  is  abundant  record  of  pardon.  More  than  60  men,  at 
one  time  and  another,  deserted  from  his  service.  "  It  will  not 
be  found,"  wrote  a  friendly  hand,14  "  that  he  has  killed  or  caused 
to  be  killed  one,  although  he  has  had  arrested  or  arrested  him- 
self more  than  20.  It  is  true  that  two  of  them  were  killed  in 
1680,  but  it  was  neither  in  his  presence  nor  by  his  order. 

12  La  Salle  says  he  arrived  at  Lake  Simcoe  the  23d  Aug.  (Margry,  II., 
115.)  It  was  there  he  arrested  two  of  his  deserters,  Gabriel  Minime  and 
Grandmaison. 

I-  Membre  says  the  departure  from  Fort  Frontenac  was  on  July  2.'kl, 
which  may  refer  to  the  canoes  that  came  to  Niagara.  La  Salle  says  he  set 
out  A  up.  2Jd.  He  also  says  he  reached  lake  Simcoe  ("'  au  hard  du  lac- 
Toronto'')  on  the  2.'kl;  hardly  credible. 

**"  Memoir  pour  Monsciyneur  le  Marquis  de  Seignelay"  in  Margrj",  II, 
286. 


A  DRAMA  OF  DISASTER  69 

These  two,  with  their  comrades,  deserted  from  the  Illinois, 
stole  what  they  could  carry  away,  ruined  the  fort  of  the  Illi- 
nois or  of  Crevecceur,  and  that  of  the  Miami,  carried  away  the 
skins  which  he  had  at  Mackinac,  pillaged  and  ruined  the  house 
of  Niagara,  and  determined  to  kill  him.  He  himself  arrested 
seven  of  them  without  doing  them  any  other  harm ;  and  the 
other  five,  refusing  to  surrender,  and  wishing  to  fire  on  his 
people,  two  among  them  were  killed.  He  had  the  right  to 
pursue  them,  in  quality  of  governor  and  master, —  and  by  nat- 
ural right  as  [they  were]  deserters,  thieves,  enemies  and  as- 
sassins ;  and  he  would  have  been  blamable  had  he  not  put 
forth  all  his  efforts  to  capture  them." 

"  As  for  the  bad  treatment  which  they  say  I  give  my  people," 
wrote  La  Salle,15  *'  there  is  not  the  least  truth  in  it,  and  there 
is  no  other  proof  than  the  complaints  of  those  who  have  de- 
serted and  robbed  me,  to  whom  is  given  as  much  credence  as 
to  honest  men;  and  the  contrary  justification  is  easy  to  make, 
as  since  that  time  not  one  has  left  me,  not  even  those  whom 
I  have  pressed  into  service,  and  who  have  been  with  me  seven 
or  eight  years.  Their  accounts  prove  that  I  owe  them  noth- 
ing, and  I  hope  they  have  done  nothing  except  at  the  instiga- 
tion of  my  enemies;  but  as  the  cabal  is  powereful  here,  I  need 
a  strong  recommendation  in  order  to  have  justice." 

Of  the  ultimate  fortunes  of  the  deserters  little  precise  in- 
formation is  afforded  by  the  documents.  While  La  Salic  was 
in  the  West,  and  before  he  learned  the  fate  of  the  Griffon, 
deserters  from  the  party  which  he  had  sent  on  in  advance  had 
reappeared  in  the  East.  In  November,  1679,  Governor  Fron- 
tenac  informed  his  king  that  Governor  Andros,  at  ""  Man- 
hatte,"  was  sending  all  the  Frenchmen  that  fell  into  his  hands 
to  Barbadocs,  but  that  he  has  retained  there  [New  York] 
and  even  well  treated  a  man  named  Pere,  and  others  who  have 
been  debauched  from  Sieur  de  la  Salic,  with  the  design  to 
employ  and  send  them  among  the  Outawas.  to  open  a  trade 
with  them."  We  shall  see  presently  how  the  English  and 
Dutch  we're  helped  in  their  first  trading  ventures  on  the  Lakes 
bv  renegade  Frenchmen. 

'•"•La  Salic,  letter  from  Missilimackinac,  Oct.,  1US2.     Marirrv,  II,  J90. 


70       AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

The  names  of  the  two  who  were  killed  near  Fort  Fron- 
tenac  are  not  given ;  nor  is  the  treatment  specified  which  Count 
Frontenac  meted  out  to  the  prisoners,  save  in  one  or  two  cases, 
notably  that  of  the  turbulent  ship-carpenter,  Moyse  Hillaret. 
This  worthy,  being  taken  before  the  Intendant,  DuChesneau, 
made  no  denial  of  his  deeds,  but  boldly  sought  to  justify  them. 
He  gave  his  own  version  of  the  trouble  on  the  Illinois.  He 
testified  that  six  of  the  men  ran  away  from  Fort  Crevecoeur 
"  about  the  time  of  the  king's  fete  " ; 1G  that  Accault,  Du  Gay 
and  Father  Hennepin  set  out  on  their  journey  to  the  country 
of  the  Sioux,  February  28th,  and  that  on  March  2d  La  Salle 
left  the  camp  with  four  men,  for  his  forced  march  to  Fort 
Frontenac.  After  they  had  gone  La  Chapelle  and  Le  Blanc 
arrived  from  a  fruitless  journey  to  Lake  Michigan,  and  told 
the  few  men  left  at  Fort  Crevecoeur  that  Fort  Frontenac  had 
been  seized  by  the  Sieur  Guiton  and  La  Salle's  creditors,  that 
La  Salle  was  a  ruined  man  and  would  never  come  back.  So 
they  took  counsel  as  to  what  they  should  do.  Le  Blanc's  re- 
ports were  the  final  discouragement  needed.  In  Hillaret  and 
the  blacksmith  he  found  kindred  spirits.  They  figured,  accord- 
ing to  Hillaret,  that  La  Salle  owed  them  nearly  three  years' 
wages,  at  the  rate  of  800  livres  per  year  for  each  carpenter 
and  1,000  for  the  blacksmith.  They  determined  to  pay  them- 
selves with  anything  they  could  lay  hands  on,  and  go  away. 
Hillaret's  declaration  17  recites  at  length  what  they  took:  guns, 
powder  and  lead,  clothing,  hatchets,  an  old  kettle,  canoes  and 
a  quantity  of  furs.  The  testimony  of  Monjault,  La  Croix  and 
Petit-Bled  agreed  with  that  of  Hillaret,  who  also  showed  a  note 
from  La  Salle,  for  the  amount  due. 

At  Mackinac,  La  Salle  learned  to  a  certainty  of  the  ship- 
wreck of  the  Griffon.  A  hatch,  a  bit  of  rigging,  a  cabin 
door,  the  end  of  a  flagstaff  and  some  bales  of  rotted  furs, 
washed  ashore,  told  the  story.  In  view  of  these  and  other  de- 
tails stated  by  La  Salle,  there  would  seem  to  be  little  warrant 
for  any  longer  making  a  mystery  of  the  fate  of  the  Griffon. 

IB  "The  King's  ff-te  "  means  the  King's  birthday,  which  in  this  case  was 
on  September  5th. 

IT  Made  at  Montreal  before  Du  Chesneau,  Aug.  17,  1G80. 


r<,rtruit>  of   I  ,;i  Salic 


A  DRAMA  OF  DISASTER  71 

On  this  journey  La  Salic  met  and  arrested  two  others  who 
had  deserted  his  service,  Gabriel  Minime  and  Grandmaison. 
They  were  thieves  and  scoundrels,  but  he  appears  to  have 
added  them  to  his  force.  The  doctor  above  mentioned  was 
Jean  Michel;  he  accompanied  the  explorer  to  the  Gulf,  and 
he  was  one  of  the  witnesses  of  the  ceremony  by  which  La  Salle 
claimed  the  Mississippi  Valley  for  France,  April  9,  1682. 

Others  who  went  by  the  Simcoe  route  in  this  summer  of 
1680  were  Andre  Renault  and  Pierre  You,  tried  and  trusty 
men ;  Tamisier,  who  died ;  and  one  named  Baron. 

With  La  Salle's  troubles  and  adventures  of  the  months  that 
followed,  the  present  chronicle  is  not  concerned.  In  May, 
1681,  he  returned  to  Mackinac,  where  he  found  Tonty  and 
Father  Membre.  With  the  latter,  he  continued  by  canoe  to 
Fort  Frontenac,  but  by  which  route  seems  to  be  nowhere  spec- 
ified. At  Montreal,  August  11,  1681,  he  made  his  will.  In 
it  he  acknowledged  his  great  obligations  to  his  cousin,  Fran- 
cois Plct,  to  whom,  in  event  of  his  own  death,  he  gave  Fort 
Frontenac  and  its  dependencies,  "  as  well  as  all  my  rights 
over  the  country  of  the  Miamis,  Illinois  and  others  to  the 
southward,  with  the  settlement  among  the  Miamis,  in  the  state 
it  may  be  at  the  time  of  my  death ;  that  of  Niagara  and  all 
others  that  I  may  make  up  to  that  period,  with  all  the  vessels, 
boats,  long-boats,  goods,  chattels  and  real  estate,  rights,  priv- 
ileges, rents,  buildings,  and  other  things  to  me  belonging  which 
may  be  then  found  thereon."  So  far  as  the  Niagara  was  con- 
cerned, it  was  the  emptiest  of  bequests.  Long  before  his  death, 
all  traces  of  his  fleeting  occupancy  of  these  shores  had  van- 
ished. 


CHAPTER  VI 

FOLLOWERS  OF  LA  SALLE 

RETURN  OF  ACCAULT  AND  HENNEPIN  —  LA  SALLE'S  LAST  VISIT  TO 
THE  NIAGARA  REGION  —  THE  ACHIEVEMENTS  OF  TONTY  — 
GRIM  COMEDIES  OF  THE  WILDERNESS. 

MICHEL  ACCAULT,  Du  Gay  the  Picard,  and  Father  Henne- 
pin,  after  their  wanderings  in  the  land  of  the  Sioux,  accom- 
panied Du  Lhut  to  Green  Bay  and  Mackinac ;  at  the  latter 
place  they  spent  the  winter  of  1680—81.  In  the  spring  of 
1681,  Accault,  Du  Gay  and  Hennepin  came  by  canoe  through 
Lake  Huron  and  the  Detroit,  to  the  Niagara.  Hennepin's  ac- 
count of  their  return  mentions  his  companions  but  once  by 
name,  and  always  exhibits  himself  as  the  life  and  leader  of 
the  journey.  That  he  was  not,  we  know  from  La  Salle's  own 
words:  "I  sent  a  canoe  up  the  Mississippi  (fleuve  Colbert) 
...  in  charge  of  two  of  my  men,  Michel  Accault  and  the 
Picard,  to  whom  the  R.  P.  Hennepin  attached  himself,"  etc. 
And  Accault  was  still  leader  of  the  party,  when  they  stepped 
ashore  above  Niagara  Falls.  One  must  regret  that  we  have 
only  Hennepin's  account  of  the  journey  or  of  this  his  last 
sojourn  in  the  region.  None  of  them  appears  to  have  been 
burdened  by  any  sense  of  obligation  to  La  Salle.  It  is  not 
recorded  that  they  made  any  effort  to  rejoin  him,  or  to  re- 
port to  him  the  result  of  their  travels  since  he  sent  them  out. 
Hennepin  tells  us  of  their  success  in  getting  game,  as  they 
came  through  Lake  Eric.  They  were  "  upon  a  large  point  of 
land  which  runs  itself  very  far  into  the  water" — probably 
Long  Point  —  when  they  saw  a  bear  far  out  in  the  lake. 
'"We  could  not  imagine  how  this  creature  got  there;  'twas 
very  improbable  that  he  should  swim  from  one  side  to  t'other, 
that  was  !}()  to  40  leagues  over."  It  being  calm,  two  of  the  men 
paddled  off  to  poor  Bruin,  and  after  firing  many  shots,  over- 
came him,  attached  him  to  the  canoe  and  towed  him  ashore, 
"  with  much  ado,  and  great  hazard  of  their  lives.  We  had 


FOLLOWERS  OF  LA  SALLE  73 

all  the  leisure  that  was  requisite,"  continues  Ilenncpin,  "  for 
the  dressing  and  ordering  him,  so  as  to  make  him  keep;  and 
in  the  mean  time  took  out  his  Intrails,  and  having  cleans'd  and 
boil'd  them,  eat  heartily  of  them.  These  are  as  good  a  dish 
as  those  of  our  Sucking-Pigs  in  Europe.  His  Flesh  served  us 
the  rest  of  our  Voyage,  which  we  usually  eat  with  Goats-flesh, 
because  it  is  too  fat  to  eat  by  itself." 

With  his  companions,  Ilennepin  revisited  the  falls  "  and 
spent  half  a  Day  in  considering  the  wonders  of  that  prodigious 
Cascade."  Of  this,  his  last  visit  to  the  region,  which  was 
apparently  in  May,  he  wrote  in  the  "  Noutdle  Dccouverte  " 
a  very  long  account,  repeatedly  referring  to  the  cataract  as  of 
more  than  600  feet  in  height,  with  space  behind  the  falling  water 
"  big  enough  for  four  Coaches  to  drive  a  breast  without  being 
wet  "  ;  and  other  equally  edifying  observations. 

They  carried  their  canoe  "  from  the  great  fall  of  Niagara, 
as  far  as  the  three  Mountains  [Lewiston],  which  are  two 
leagues  below,  in  all  which  way  we  percciv'd  never  a  Snake," 
though  he  had  just  assured  his  readers  that  the  vicinity  of  the 
falls  was  infested  with  them.  At  the  mouth  of  the  river  he 
looked  for  La  Salle's  fort :  "  We  thought  we  should  find  some 
Canadians  at  the  Fort  of  the  River  which  we  had  begun  to 
build,  at  the  beginning  of  our  Discovery:  but  these  Forts  were 
only  built  for  a  Show,  to  cover  the  secret  Hopes  M.  de  la 
Salle  had  given  to  the  French  Court."  He  charges  La  Salle 
with  having  used  the  protection  of  the  French  Court  for  "  his 
own  private  Interest,"  and  repeatedly  assails  with  misrepre- 
sentation and  more  subtle  implication  the  leader  to  whom  he 
owed  everything. 

"  The  Fort  of  the  River  of  Niagara  was  become  a  deserted 
place,"  he  writes,  of  his  last  glimpse.  With  his  companions, 
he  followed  the  south  shore  of  the  lake:  and  after  a  stop  among 
the  Senecas  of  the  Genesee,  crossed  to  Fort  Frontcnac,  where 
he  found  Sergeant  La  Fleur,  still  commanding  in  La  Salk-'s  ab- 
sence, and  Father  Luke  Buissct.  After  a  sojourn  for  rest 

i  "  Xe\y  Discovery,"  London,  1(i!^,  p.  -It.  Like  other  early  writers, 
Ilennepin  speaks  of  iroats  as  a  iraine  animal  in  the  Lakes  region.  Kefer- 
enee  is  probably  to  the  deer. 


74  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

and  devotion,  he  made  his  way  to  Quebec  and  soon  sailed  for 
France. 

It  is  unnecessary  here  to  add  to  the  literature  of  Hennepin, 
already  ample  and  exceedingly  varied  in  valuation  of  the 
priest's  writings.  We  give  him  due  recognition  for  the  part  he 
bore  in  our  regional  history;  and  merely  append  the  following 
decree  of  Louis  XIV.,  addressed  to  Governor  de  Callieres  and 
the  Intendant,  De  Champigny,  in  1699 : 

His  Majesty  has  been  informed  that  Father  Hennepin,  a  Dutch 
Franciscan  who  has  formerly  been  in  Canada,  is  desirous  of  return- 
ing thither.  As  his  Majesty  is  not  satisfied  with  the  conduct  of  the 
Friar,  it  is  his  pleasure  that  if  he  return  thither,  they  arrest  and 
send  him  to  the  Intendant  at  Rochefort,  to  whom  his  Majesty  will 
communicate  his  intentions  in  his  regard.2 

In  August,  1681,  with  a  new  company,  La  Salle  is  once  more 
on  the  Niagara,  on  his  way  west.  Of  this  visit  Le  Clercq 
says: 3 

We  have  said  that  Lake  de  Conty  empties  into  Lake  Frontenac 
by  a  channel  14  or  15  leagues  long  and  by  a  cataract  or  waterfall 
100  fathoms  high.  The  current  of  this  channel  is  of  extraordinary 
rapidity.  One  of  the  canoes,  launched  a  little  below  the  mouth  of 
the  lake,  was  carried  away  by  the  current,  but  the  men  and  goods 
were  saved.  This  accident  caused  a  delay  of  only  one  day.  At 
last  the  Sieur  de  la  Salle,  after  sending  new  orders  to  the  Sieur  de  la 
Forest,  commandant  at  Fort  Frontenac,  and  leaving  men  at  Fort  de 
Conty,  embarked  on  Lake  de  Conty  on  the  28th  of  August  in  the 
year  1681,  and  at  the  beginning  of  November  arrived  at  the  river  of 
the  Miamis. 

Now  came  the  realization  of  his  dreams,  the  accomplish- 
ment of  the  thing  at  which  he  had  twice  before  failed.  Down 
the  great  river  he  went ;  and  when  on  April  9,  1682,  at  the 
mouth  of  the  Mississippi,  he  named  the  region  "  Louisiana," 
and  formally  took  possession  of  it  in  the  name  of  God  and 

2N.  Y.  Col.  Docs.,  IX,  701. 

3  A  footnote  in  Mai-pry,  II.,  164,  says  that  the  discoverer  returned  to 
the  West  by  the  Lake  Simcoe  route.  Parknmn  says  the  same  thing,  with- 
out citing  any  authority.  ("La  Salle,"  ed.  1889,  p.  273.)  Our  quotation 
from  Le  Clercq  is  the  narrative  of  Mcmbrr. 


FOLLOWERS  OF  LA  SALLE  75 

King  Louis  XIV,  there  were  with  him  four  of  the  men  who 
had  first  come  in  his  service  to  the  Niagara  in  1678  and  re- 
mained faithful  ever  since:  Tonty,  Father  Membre,  Dautray, 
and  Francois  de  Boisrondet.  The  others  were  Jacques 
Cauchois,  Gilles  Menerct,  Jean  Dulignon,  Nicolas  La  Salle, 
and  La  Metairie,  the  notary  from  Fort  Frontenac. 

It  is  to  be  noted  that  La  Salle,  on  reaching  the  Arkansas, 
in  March,  1682,  took  formal  possession  of  the  country,  with 
civil  and  religious  ceremonies  and  the  raising  of  a  cross.  Sim- 
ilar observances,  in  April,  at  the  mouth  of  the  Mississippi, 
proclaimed  the  discovery  and  claimed  the  region  for  France. 
But  never  did  he  or  those  under  him,  hold  such  service  on  the 
Niagara  or  the  Great  Lakes.  It  was  the  customary  proclama- 
tion of  discovery ;  and  had  been  made  on  the  north  shore  of 
Lake  Erie  in  1669  by  Galinee  and  Dollier  de  Casson ;  but  no 
such  proclamation,  nor  any  claim  to  priority  in  the  Niagara 
region  was  ever  put  forward  by  La  Salle. 

La  Salle  retraced  his  way  up  the  Mississippi,  and  after  a 
long  illness  reached  Mackinac,  whither  he  had  sent  Tonty. 
The  first  news  which  came  east  of  his  exploration  of  the 
Mississippi  to  its  mouth  came  from  Tonty,  who  at  Mackinac 
announced  the  great  achievement.  The  lateness  of  the  sea- 
son caused  La  Salle  to  abandon  his  plan  of  proceeding  to 
Quebec ;  with  his  lieutenant  he  returned  to  the  Illinois,  where 
the  winter  of  1682-83  was  spent  in  fortifying  Starved  Rock, 
in  trade,  and  in  attempts  to  strengthen  the  little  colony.  In 
the  meantime  Count  Frontenac  was  recalled  and  was  suc- 
ceeded as  Governor  of  Canada  by  La  Barre,  who  was  no  friend 
to  La  Salle,  nor  inclined  to  give  any  aid  in  his  undertakings. 
On  the  contrary,  he  wrote  disparagingly  of  him  to  the  Minis- 
try, prevented  supplies  from  being  sent  to  him,  and  in  the 
spring  of  1683  confiscated  Fort  Frontenac  and  all  that  La 
Salle  had  there.  In  the  fall  of  that  year  the  explorer  passed 
eastward;  by  which  route  seems  nowhere  to  be  specified.  lie 
readied  Quebec  in  November,  and  finding  his  case  hopeless  in 
Canada,  soon  after  sailed  for  France.  He  was  never  again  in 
the  region  the  history  of  which  we  here  trace. 

Assuredly,  of  all  leaders  of  really  great  undertakings,  who 


76  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

did  achieve  a  measure  of  success,  and  whose  names  are  the 
enduring  endowment  of  history,  Robert  Cavelier  de  La  Salle 
was  in  some  respects  the  most  unfortunate.  The  ordinary 
hardships  of  exploration  were  the  least  of  his  troubles.  He 
could  meet  fatigue  and  starvation  with  a  light  heart.  The 
coldness  and  austerity  which  repelled  many,  seemed  to  win  him 
the  respect  and  in  some  cases  the  devoted  allegiance,  of  the 
Indian.  But  from  first  to  last,  throughout  his  great  Amer- 
ican adventure,  he  was  beset  by  a  succession  of  misfortunes 
most  of  which,  it  would  seem,  ordinary  care  and  good  man- 
agement could  have  averted.  His  vessels  were  wrecked,  his 
goods  were  lost,  his  possessions  at  Fort  Frontenac  were  con- 
fiscated, his  enemies  were  busy  at  Court.  His  men  robbed  him, 
burned  his  buildings,  and  deserted.  Some  to  whom  he  gave 
his  trust,  turned  traitor,  and  finally  one  of  his  miserable  fol- 
lowers shot  him  in  the  back  and  he  died  in  a  Texas  swamp. 
He  had  a  perfect  genius  for  making  enemies  and  a  knack  of 
defeating  his  own  aims  by  surrounding  himself  with  untrust- 
worthy and  incompetent  men. 

Of  the  few  who  remained  faithful,  one  alone  stands  conspicu- 
ous. That  one  was  the  Italian,  Tonty.  He  supplied  the  sort 
of  ability  La  Salle  did  not  possess,  and  he  served  the  adven- 
turer with  patient  and  sturdy  fidelity.  There  are  few  charac- 
ters prominent  in  Niagara  history  which  stand  scrutiny  better, 
or  more  enlist  the  admiration  than  the  Knight  Henri  de  Tonty, 
the  Man  with  the  Iron  Hand.  His  part  in  the  history  of  the 
region  here  under  study  rivals  La  Salle's  in  importance  and 
extends  over  a  longer  period  of  years. 

Although  there  is  no  satisfactory  or  adequate  biography 
of  Tonty,  there  is,  seemingly  without  exception,  among  stu- 
dents and  writers,  high  appreciation  of  his  worth.4  He  was 
a  son  of  the  Neapolitan  banker  Lorenzo  Tonti  whose  name 

4  See  especially  "  Lc.i  Tout;/,"  by  Benjamin  Suite,  Trans.  Hoy.  Soc. 
Canada,  vol.  XI;  also  the  pamphlet,  "The  Man  with  the  Iron  Hand,"  by 
Henry  E.  Lejrler.  (Milwaukee,  1S9fi.)  Parkrnan  says  much  of  him,  al- 
ways with  warm  appreciation:  "There  are  very  few  names  in  French- 
American  history  mentioned  with  such  unanimity  of  praise  as  that  of  Henri 
de  Tonty.  Ilennepin  finds  some  fault  with  him,  but  his  censure  is  com- 
mendation." ("La  Salle,"  ed.  1S89,  p.  441  note.) 


FOLLOWERS  OF  LA  SALLE  77 

is  preserved  in  the  word  tontine,  descriptive  of  the  insurance 
system  he  devised.  Born  in  1649  or  1650,  Henri  became  a 
cadet  in  the  French  army  in  1668.  It  was  perhaps  Frencli 
influence  which  led  him  to  change  the  spelling  of  his  family 
name,  numerous  autographs  exist  showing  it  written  "  Tonty." 
He  also  sometimes  spelled  his  first  name  "  Henry."  He  saw 
much  active  military  service  and  in  Sicily,  in  1677,  at  the 
siege  of  Messina,  according  to  accepted  accounts,  his  right 
hand  was  torn  away  by  a  grenade.  He  afterwards  wore  a 
hand  of  metal,  covered  by  a  glove.  One  esteemed  writer 5 
says  it  was  of  silver,  others  say  it  was  of  iron ;  so  that  the 
wearer  of  the  metal  member  has  come  to  be  commonly  styled 
"  the  Man  with  the  Iron  Hand,"  by  which  picturesque  and  sug- 
gestive phrase  La  Salle's  capable  administrator  is  designated 
in  many  works.  But  if  we  may  trust  the  earliest  chronicler 
who  mentions  it,  the  false  hand  was  neither  of  silver  nor  iron, 
but  copper.  Bacqueville  de  la  Potherie,  contemporary  with 
Tontv,  says  in  his  history  published  in  1722:  "  The  Chevalier 
de  Tonty  had  a  wrist  of  copper  covered  usually  with  a  glove. 
This  gentleman,  in  an  engagement  at  Messina,  received  a  sabre- 
stroke  on  the  fist  and  was  made  prisoner.  He  himself  cut  off 
the  [wounded]  hand  with  a  knife,  without  waiting  for  a  sur- 
geon to  perform  the  operation.  .  .  .  The  Indians  greatly 
feared  it;  they  called  him  Iron-Arm  \_Bras-de-F cr~\  ;  he  often 
broke  their  heads  and  teetli  with  a  blow  of  the  fist  when  he 
had  difficulty  [demelcs]  with  them.  They  did  not  know,  at 
first,  that  he  had  this  wrist  of  copper."  Parkman  speaks  of 
the  efficacy  of  this  gloved  member  as  a  corrective  influence 
among  the  savages  and  adds  that  they  regarded  Tonty  as  a 
"  medicine  "  of  the  first  class.  It  is  clear,  however,  that 
Tonty's  ability  to  deal  with  men,  be  they  red  or  white,  did 
not  depend  on  his  prowess  in  cracking  skulls  or  knocking  out 
teeth. 

It  was  the  Prince  of  Conti  who  recommended  Tonty  to 
La  Salle.  That  the  explorer  found  him  satisfactory  may  be 
gathered  from  a  letter  which  La  Salle  wrote  to  his  great  pa- 

r>  "  Duluth  was  a  cousin  of  Tonty  with  the  silver  hand."  Winsor,  "  Car- 
tier  to  Frontenac,"  p.  -?!?. 


78       AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

tron,  soon  after  reaching  America.  It  is  dated  "  Quebec,  Oc- 
tober 31,  1678,"  and  says: 

"  You  well  know  Tonty's  honorable  character  and  agreeable 
disposition,  but  perhaps  you  wTould  not  have  thought  him  equal 
to  tasks  which  call  for  a  hardy  constitution,  knowledge  of  the 
country  and  the  use  of  both  hands.  Nevertheless,  his  energy 
and  cleverness  make  him  equal  to  everything.  At  this  mo- 
ment, when  everybody  dreads  the  cold,  he  is  beginning  the  con- 
struction of  a  new  fort,  200  miles  from  here,  to  which  I  have 
taken  the  liberty  of  giving  the  name  of  Conti.  It  is  situated 
near  the  great  cataract,  more  than  120  toises  6  in  height." 
This  letter  shows  what  La  Salle  proposed  for  Tonty,  rather 
than  what  he  had  yet  done.  Tonty  was  still  at  Fort  Fron- 
tenac ;  and  when  the  Niagara  was  reached,  as  preceding  pages 
show,  his  chief  charge  was  the  construction  of  the  Griffon. 

The  prince  to  whom  this  letter  was  addressed  was  Louis- 
Armand  de  Bourbon,  eldest  son  of  Armand,  the  first  Prince  of 
Conti,  and  nephew  of  the  great  Conde.  Born  in  1661  he  was 
in  his  eighteenth  year  when  in  1678  he  appears  as  La  Salle's 
patron.  To  what  extent  he  aided  the  explorer,  either  with 
funds  or  influence,  is  not  known ;  but  that  there  had  been  sub- 
stantial proof  of  his  interest  and  friendship  is  evident  from 
La  Salle's  letters,  and  from  the  great  honor  which  he  sought 
to  bring  to  his  patron  by  bestowing  on  his  fort,  on  the  great 
cataract,  and  on  the  lake  which  we  know  as  Erie,  the  name  of 
Conti.  If  these  were  bestowed  in  the  hope  of  favors  to  come, 
there  is  nothing  in  the  subsequent  fortunes  of  La  Salle  to  in- 
dicate that  he  profited  from  thus  adding  to  the  map  of  Amer- 
ica the  name  of  one  of  the  greatest  families  of  Europe's  most 
brilliant  court.  The  name  Conti  —  or  "  Conty,"  for  it  appears 
both  ways  with  equal  authority  —  did  not  long  stay  on  the 
map.  Apparently  no  one  but  La  Salle  himself  used  it  for  the 
designation  of  Niagara  Falls.  In  the  very  year  of  La  Salle's 
death  it  was  replaced,  as  the  name  of  the  fort  at  the  river's 
mouth,  by  Denonville,  who  was  not  too  modest  to  give  his  own 

G  That  is,  more  th;m  7.>0  feet!  Father  Hennepin's  exaggeration  in  this 
matter  is  familiar;  hut  the  reader  will  note  that  La  Salle's  letter  was 
written  two  months  hefore  Ilenncpin  saw  the  Falls. 


FOLLOWERS  OF  LA  SALLE  79 

name  to  the  fort  he  built  where  the  feeble  Fort  Conti  had  been. 
For  some  years  the  name  was  retained  for  the  lake ;  but  geog- 
raphers soon  settled  upon  one  spelling  or  another  of  the  In- 
dian name  which  for  a  century  and  a  half  has  been  written 
"  Erie." 

The  youthful  prince  whose  name  was  so  evanescent  a  part 
of  our  regional  history  was  the  least  distinguished  of  a  very 
distinguished  line.  There  is  a  striking  incongruity  between 
the  broad  plans  and  far-reaching  ambitions  of  La  Salle  and 
the  relative  insignificance  of  his  patron.  The  few  lines  that 
history  accord  him  deal  chiefly  with  his  faults.  Like  many  a 
noble  youth  of  his  time,  he  seems  to  have  played  a  man's  part 
while  little  more  than  a  boy.  But  if  frivolous  and  dissipated 
at  court,  he  was  brave  and  capable  as  a  soldier.  He  served 
in  the  imperial  army  in  the  campaign  of  Hungary  against  the 
Turks  and  took  a  brilliant  part  in  the  battle  of  Gran,  1685. 
He  died  in  that  year,  some  two  years  before  La  Salle  was  mur- 
dered ;  and  is  probably  remembered  far  less  for  the  aid  he  gave 
to  exploration  in  America  than  for  the  fact,  mentioned  in  all 
notices  of  him,  that  he  married  M'lle  de  Blois,  a  natural  daugh- 
ter of  Louis  XIV  and  M'llc  de  La  Valliere.  The  great  beauty 
of  his  wife  has  been  celebrated  in  verse  and  prose  by  La 
Fontaine  and  Mine,  de  Sevigne. 

It  is  unnecessary  to  trace  in  detail  the  service  of  Tonty 
during  the  years  that  followed.  Much  of  it  has  already  been 
indicated.  It  was  he  who  built  Fort  Crevccceur,  as  it  was 
he  who  built  the  Griffon.  He  was  left  in  command  when,  in 
March,  1680,  La  Salle,  Dautray  and  others  set  out  for  Can- 
ada. Cares  and  privations  on  the  Illinois  brought  on  a  long 
sickness.  In  the  summer  of  1681  he  was  in  Montreal,  with  La 
Salle  and  Membre.  Returning  westward  in  August,  their 
loaded  barque  sailed  from  Frontenac  to  Trajagou.7  Of  this 
passing  Tonty  wrote:  ';  The  father  and  I  went  on  board,  and 
landed  the  first  day  at  Niagara,  below  the  fall  of  the  river; 
there  we  were  forced  to  put  our  baggage  and  merchandise  upon 
sledges,  and  so  conduct  them  to  the  Lake  Herie,  where  we  re- 
embarked  in  a  canoe  to  the  number  of  20  persons,  as  well  soul- 

"  On   Bellin's  map  of  1715,  Tejaiairon,  near  present  Toronto. 


80      AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

diers  as  mariners."  By  the  same  account,  they  gained  the 
Miami,  where  La  Salle  joined  them  in  November. 

In  1682  he  accompanied  his  chief  to  the  mouth  of  the  Missis- 
sippi, and  on  April  9th  signed  his  name  to  the  proces-verbal 
by  which  the  country  was  claimed  for  France.  He  came  again 
to  the  Niagara  in  1687,  to  share  in  the  expedition  of  Denon- 
ville  against  the  Senecas :  but  the  chief  scene  of  his  activities, 
for  some  years,  was  Fort  St.  Louis  of  the  Illinois.  He  ap- 
pears to  have  visited  Montreal  in  1696,  but  we  have  no  note 
of  his  presence  on  the  Niagara  later  than  1687.  In  1702  he 
joined  Iberville  in  Louisiana,  and  in  1704,  apparently  in  the 
vicinity  of  Mobile,  he  died.  He  never  received  any  recom- 
pense from  his  Government  for  his  long  and  faithful  service 
in  America. 

Henri  de  Tonty  has  sometimes  been  confused  with  his 
younger  brother  Alphonse,  who  was  commandant  at  Detroit  in 
1704,  and  later,  bearing  for  many  years  an  important  part  in 
that  colony.  A  yet  younger  brother  bore  the  name  of  Henri, 
but  has  no  part  in  the  history  of  our  region. 

That  the  example  of  the  restless  and  dauntless  La  Salle  ex- 
erted an  influence  over  the  young  men  of  his  time,  is  certain. 
Many  a  less  worthy  adventurer  sought  to  follow  his  course; 
less  indeed  by  way  of  exploration,  than  in  prosecution  of  the 
Indian  trade.  The  Government  of  the  colony  found  nothing 
more  difficult  to  cope  with,  than  the  unlicensed,  law-defying 
coureur  de  bois.  In  1682,  there  was  a  marked  outbreak  of  this 
fevey  for  the  forest.  Many  young  men  secretly  went  into  the 
Indian  trade,  without  Government  permits,  and  greatly  to  the 
disturbance  of  licensed  traffic.  The  Sieur  de  La  Chesnaye  who 
at  heavy  cost  had  fitted  out  several  canoes  for  western  barter 
complained  to  La  Barre,  who  was  so  influenced  by  La  Chesnaye's 
representations  that  he  issued  an  order  addressed  to  the  Iro- 
quois,  giving  them  leave  to  appropriate  all  the  goods  and  pel- 
tries which  they  might  be  able  to  seize  from  French  voy- 
ageurs,  if  the  latter  were  not  able  to  show  passports  like  one 
which  he  sent  to  them.  It  was  an  extraordinarv  commission  to 
put  in  the  hands  of  savages,  and  it  resulted  about  as  might 
have  been  foreseen.  As  two  of  La  Chesnaye's  canoes,  coming 


FOLLOWERS  OF  LA  SALLE  81 

from  the  country  of  the  Ottawas,  laden  with  furs,  and  in  the 
charge  of  Beauvais  de  Tilly,  essayed  to  pass  the  Niagara,  they 
were  promptly  stopped  by  the  alert  Senecas  posted  there,  and 
ordered  to  show  their  passes.  As  ill  luck  would  have  it,  they 
had  either  lost  or  left  them ;  whereupon  the  grim  sentries  of  the 
Niagara,  listening  to  no  explanation,  promptly  appropriated 
all  there  was,  and  sent  the  Frenchmen  on  to  Montreal,  empty- 
handed,  to  tell  La  Barre  that  his  agents  on  the  Niagara  were 
carrying  out  his  orders.  When  La  Barrc  sent  De  Longueuil 
to  the  Niagara,  to  explain  the  situation  and  recover  the  goods, 
the  Indians  retorted,  "  fiercely,"  that  their  }Toung  men  had  but 
carried  out  the  Governor's  orders ;  and  even  the  adroit  De 
Longueuil  had  to  return  empty-handed.  "  Behold,"  says  a 
memoir  of  the  time,  "  the  first  preliminary  step  to  the  cruel  war 
which  we  have  sustained  in  consequence  and  which  has  even 
threatened  the  abandonment  of  the  colony."  8 

In  1680  La  Salic  had  taken  his  second  departure  from  Lake 
Ontario.  His  establishment  at  the  mouth  of  the  Niagara  had 
burned,  yet  the  spot  was  one  of  frequent  resort  by  Indians 
of  the  West,  and  offered  too  much  in  the  way  of  trade  to  be 
neglected.  After  his  chief  had  gone,  La  Fleur,  at  Frontenac, 
stocked  the  barque  and  sent  it  up  the  lake  for  furs.  Its  re- 
ception at  the  mouth  of  the  Niagara  was  notable.  "  Some  of 
the  Sinnekes,"  says  a  quaint  English  record,  "  and  some  of  the 
Onnondages  went  aboard  of  a  French  barque  att  Onnyagaro, 
that  was  come  to  trade  there,  and  took  out  of  the  said  Barke 
a  Caskc  of  Brandy  and  ctitt  the  Cable."  The  date  of  this  pleas- 
antry is  fixed  by  a  statement  that  "  this  was  done  in  the  Gov- 
er'nt  of  Sir  Edmond  Andrews  [Andros]."1 

It  was  not  the  only  lawless  sei/ure  at  the  mouth  of  the  Ni- 
agara. Sonic  three  or  four  years  later  a  similar  incident  is 
reported.  During  an  examination  at  Albany  in  1687  the  Sen- 
ecas acknowledged  that  '"  about  a  year  agoc,"  a  Frenchman 
named  Grandmason  —  an  Anglicised  spelling  —  came  with  a 

^"Memnire  sur  le  Camilla"   IfiSO. 

"Statement  of  the  Five  Nations  to  (mv.  Donpan.  Albany,  A  up.  <>,  IfiST. 
X.  Y.  Col.  Does.,  III.,  111.  Andres  ceased  to  be  Governor  of  New  York 
Colony  in  October,  1680. 


82       AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

partner  "  to  a  place  called  Aquarage  neer  to  Onnyagaro," 
where  the  Senecas  and  Onondagas  took  a  hundred  beaver  skins 
away  from  him;  but  they  justified  this  act  as  having  been  done 
under  orders,  "  hee  having  noe  passe  neither  from  His  Ex- 
cell'cy  the  Govr  nor  the  Govr  of  Canada";  but,  said  the  In- 
dians, we  gave  the  hundred  beavers  back  again.  The  poor  In- 
dian was  never  more  perplexed  than  in  these  days  of  budding 
rivalry  for  the  fur  trade. 

"  Aquarage  "  can  not  be  more  definitely  located  than  that  it 
was  near  Niagara. 

No  authority  is  found  to  show  that  Count  Frontenac  ever 
voyaged  beyond  the  Bay  of  Quinte  on  the  north,  or  Oswego  on 
the  south,  in  the  lake  that  for  many  years  was  designated  by 
his  name.10  He  knew  of  the  portage  at  Niagara,  but  was  mis- 
informed as  to  its  length.  "  A  person  can  go,"  he  wrote,  No- 
vember 14,  1674,  in  reporting  Joliet's  discoveries,  "  from  Lake 
Ontario  and  Fort  Frontenac  in  a  bark  to  the  Gulf  of  Mexico, 
there  being  only  one  carrying-place,  half  a  league  in  length, 
where  Lake  Ontario  communicates  with  Lake  Erie.  A  settle- 
ment could  be  made  at  this  point  and  another  bark  built  at 
Lake  Erie."  n 

The  few  records  that  have  come  down  to  us,  of  this  period 
on  the  Lakes,  are  wholly  of  acts  of  violence.  Lake  Erie  was 

10  The  allusion  in  a  note  in  the  Jesuit  Relations  (Thwaites  ed.,  LX.,  319) 
to  a  voyage  of  Frontenac  to  Niagara  in  1GT6,  is  beyond  question  an  inad- 
vertence.    The   authority   on   which   the   editor   makes   the   statement,   is   a 
letter  of  Louis  XIV.  to  Count  Frontenac,  Apr.  28,  1677;  but  that  letter,  as 
printed  in  the   X.  Y.  Col.  Docs.,  IX.,  126,  speaks  only  of  the  Governor's 
"  voyage  to   Fort  Frontenac." 

The  historian  Brodhead  makes  the  missionary  Gamier  a  visitor  at 
Niagara  in  1683.  "Gamier,"  says  Brodhead,  "who  for  three  years  had 
been  left  alone  among  the  Senecas,  now  [1683]  felt  no  longer  safe,  and 
escaped  from  Niagara  to  Fort  Frontenac."  ("  History  of  the  State  of 
New  York,"  l.st  cd.,  II,  37S).  But  the  document  Brodhead  cites,  states 
that  Gamier  "  escaped  in  the  bark  which  was  anchored  in  a  little  river 
seven  leagues  from  their  village,  and  where  all  the  Iroquois  used  to  come 
to  trade."  (De  Meulles  to  De  Seignclay,  Quebec,  July  8,  1684.)  This  an- 
chorage probably  was  Irondequoit,  which  is  approximately  the  distance 
mentioned  from  Garnier's  mission  at  Gandougarae,  a  few  miles  from  present 
Canandaigua ;  but  it  was  more  than  100  miles  from  the  mission  to  the 
mouth  of  the  Niagara. 

11  N.  Y.  Col.  Docs.,  IX,  121. 


FOLLOWERS  OF  LA  SALLE  83 

still  too  little  under  the  sway  of  the  white  man  fairly  to  come 
as  yet  into  history  at  all;  hut  on  Lake  Ontario  various  en- 
counters took  place,  some  of  them  vaguely  recorded,  while  of 
many  more,  heyond  question  picturesquely  melodramatic,  no  tale 
can  be  told.  By  1682  the  Iroquois,  irritated  by  various  acts 
of  the  French,  were  spurring  up  their  bravery  in  frenzied 
dances  and  proclaiming  their  purpose  "  to  put  Onontio  in  the 
kettle."  Theft  and  murder  became  common  incidents,  and  no 
white  man  could  count  his  life  safe  in  the  region  through  which 
the  Scnecas  ranged.  Even  Father  Carheil  was  mobbed.  Not 
the  least  stirring  episode  of  1682  happened  in  the  Niagara 
River,  where  the  Sicur  La  Marque  had  anchored  the  little 
barque.  He  had  sailed  hither  from  Cataraqui,  probably  for 
trade;  but  the  playful  Senecas  boarded  the  vessel  in  force, 
trussed  up  the  pilot,  beat  the  Frenchmen  and  made  off  with 
1300  livrcs'  worth  of  goods.12  Soon  after  the  warrior  Black 
Kettle,  with  his  band  appeared  at  Cataraqui  itself,  broke  into 
the  storeroom  and  carried  away  a  quantity  of  clothing.  Of- 
fenses of  this  sort  and  worse  gradually  accumulated,  until,  as 
De  Courcelles  handed  the  colony  over  to  La  Barre,  there  was 
deemed  ample  warrant  for  an  expedition  of  chastisement. 

At  this  time  there  was  three  primitive  sailing  craft  on  Lake 
Ontario,  making  their  base  at  Fort  Frontcnac,  which  was  lit- 
tle more  than  a  store  for  the  Indian  goods.  Not  merely  the 
sailing-craft,  but  fleets  of  laden  canoes,  were  sent  to  the  wild 
and  hazardous  shores  to  the  westward,  to  trade  with  the  In- 
dians. The  mouth  of  the  Niagara  was  a  favorite  place  for  this 
trade;  in  1683,  according  to  the  report  above  cited,  "there 
were  seven  or  eight  canoes  trading  at  the  Falls  of  Niagara  for 
the  interest  of  the  said  fort,''  by  which  statement  the  fault-find- 
ing De  Meullcs  sought  to  show  that  Frontenac  was  using  the 
fort  and  the  trading  facilities  of  the  lake,  not  for  the  King, 
but  for  his  own  profit. 

There  we're  ever  to  be  met  the  hazards  of  a  hostile  fron- 
tier, even  at  Fort  Frontenac.  In  May,  16S1-,  a  band  of  Semras 
beached  their  canoes  on  the  strand,  and  carried  their  peltries 

i-  The  Ab!>e  do  Belmont  records  this  affair,  without  further  detail.  Xo 
mention  is  found  of  it  elsewhere. 


84      AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

to  the  fort,  where  the  storekeeper,  one  Champagne,  made  bar- 
ter with  them;  but  when,  through  fear  or  niggardliness,  he 
refused  them  drink,  the  stalwart  and  reckless  savages  made 
rough-house  of  the  whole  fort.  They  stole  everything  they 
could  lay  hands  on ;  then,  according  to  the  old  chronicle,  "  sup- 
posing we  were  at  profound  peace,  they  restored  all  the 
merchandise,"  but  this  incredible  renunciation  was  not  until 
their  sportive  humor  had  been  somewhat  appeased,  "  after  hav- 
ing given  Champagne  and  the  handful  of  people  there  a  sound 
drubbing,  and  drank  as  much  brandy  as  they  pleased ;  which 
clearly  proves,"  triumphantly  concludes  our  disgruntled  offi- 
cial, "  that  the  General  uses  this  Fort  only  as  a  store  for  the 
trade  throughout  Lake  Ontario."  13 

From  the  days  of  La  Salle  and  Denonville  down  to  the  re- 
establishment  of  the  French  on  the  Niagara,  the  story  of  Lake 
Ontario  appeals  by  its  very  meagerness  to  the  imagination. 
Never  wholly  deserted  by  traders,  it  was,  as  we  have  seen,  more 
than  once  the  theater  of  scenes  of  violence  and  outlawry.  The 
French,  realizing  more  and  more  its  splendid  possibilities,  sent 
into  it  goodly  store  of  trading  goods ;  and,  at  least  until  the 
temporary  abandonment  of  Fort  Frontenac,  kept  in  commis- 
sion one  or  two  primitive  brigantines,  which  skirted  the  for- 
ested shores,  made  port  of  call  wherever  barter  could  be  had, 
and  cruised  without  hindrance  and  with  no  mean  seamanship 
these  lonely  wilderness  waters.  Wind  and  wave  and  seasons' 
changes,  seemingly  so  fickle,  were  then  as  now ;  but  the  intrepid 
navigator  of  those  distant  years  had  little  to  rely  on  save  his 
own  resources  and  the  Providence  which  attends  the  daring. 
There  were  no  charts  to  show  channel  or  reef,  rock  or  shoal, 
save  such  as  he  might  sketch  from  his  own  discoveries ;  no 
lights  to  warn  or  guide;  no  harbors  even,  save  such  as  nature 
made;  yet  every  glimpse  we  have  of  the  life  of  old,  shows  the 
lake  sailors  of  those  days  as  a  happy-go-lucky  crew  who  knew 
the  ins  and  outs  of  Ontario's  shores,  rocky  isles  and  tortuous 
channels,  as  no  manner  of  men  have  known  them  since,  and 
who  bore  into  every  bay  and  anchorage  the  white  flag  of  the 
Bourbon  kings. 

13  Ib. 


FOLLOWERS  OF  LA  SALLE  85 

To-day,  the  leisured  yachtsman  making  holiday,  moors  his 
shining  craft  in  some  pellucid  cove.  As  evening  falls,  the  lap 
of  the  wavelets  at  his  vessel's  side,  the  incense  of  his  ruminative 
pipe,  lull  his  soul  into  a  receptive  sense  of  sights  and  sounds 
unheeded  in  the  bright  and  busy  day.  Dimly  through  the  dusk, 
around  the  neighboring  point  he  sees  a  strange-shaped  vessel 
glide.  He  hears  the  creak  of  a  gaff,  the  muffled  clatter  of  low- 
ering sail,  calls  and  commands  in  a  tongue  half  known,  half 
strange;  the  splash  of  an  anchor  and  the  rhythm  of  a  run- 
ning chain.  The  August  moon  makes  silhouette  of  a  distant 
pine,  the  drowsy  breeze  brings  refrain  of  some  foolish,  haunt- 
ing melody  of  the  old  regime,  of  the  days  when  the  hardy  sons 
of  France,  sailing  these  wilderness  waters  as  their  own,  still 
like  the  children  they  were,  sang  the  songs  of  Anjou,  of  Brit- 
tany or  Lorraine.  Lulled  to  the  border-land  of  sleep,  our  sum- 
mer sailor  vows  to  seek  at  daybreak  the  unknown  craft  —  but 
with  the  first  sun-glint,  his  thought  is  for  the  morning  plunge, 
the  glorious  swim  ;  and  like  the  vanishing  wisps  of  mist,  fades 
the  memory  of  his  brief  and  shadowy  comradeship  with  the  old- 
time  voyageurs  and  sailors  of  the  Ontario  sea. 


CHAPTER  VII 

LA  BARRE'S  FIASCO 

PERROT  BRINGS  "  THE  ARMY  OF  THE  SOUTH  "  TO  NIAGARA  —  AWAK- 
ENING OF  ENGLISH  INTEREST  IN  THE  REGION  —  TRADE  RIVALRY 
DEVELOPS  A  TRAGEDY  —  MISADVENTURES  OF  JOHANNES  ROOSE- 
BOOM. 

THE  student  of  Great  Lakes  history  under  the  French  is  fa- 
miliar with  the  attempt  made  by  Governor  La  Barre,  in  the 
summer  of  1684,  to  discipline  the  Iroquois  for  certain  out- 
rages they  had  committed  against  the  French.  Man}T  chron- 
iclers of  these  events  have  set  forth  the  story  of  La  Barre's  ad- 
vance, as  far  as  the  mouth  of  Salmon  River  —  the  La 
Famine  l  of  old  chroniclers  —  at  the  southeast  of  Lake  On- 
tario ;  where  they  ran  short  of  food,  and  sickened  and  died  of 
fever,  while  he  concluded  a  truce  with  the  Iroquois,  having 
gained  nothing  from  them  save  their  contempt.  The  expedi- 
tion, which  was  to  have  struck  terror  to  the  hearts  of  the  Five 
Nations,  ended  (as  the  early  historian  Golden  delightfully  sums 
it  up),  in  "  a  Scold  between  the  French  General  and  an  old 
Indian."  Nothing  ever  attempted  by  the  French  in  America 
was  more  futile ;  yet  at  the  outset,  however  lacking  he  may 
have  been  in  ability,  La  Barre  displayed  abundant  zeal.  He 
talked  of  crushing  the  Iroquois ;  and  to  this  end  sought  to 
enlist  all  the  French  allies  to  the  westward.  In  June  two  mes- 
sengers, the  Sieurs  Guillet  and  Hebert,  were  sent  by  the  Ot- 
tawa route  to  the  posts  and  missions  of  Mackinac  and  Green 
Bay,  with  orders  to  Durantaye  and  Du  Lhut,  to  gather  as 
many  as  possible  of  the  Ottawas,  Hurons  and  other  western 
enemies  of  the  Iroquois,  and  come  to  his  aid.  They  were  to 

i  The  exact  site  has  been  subject  of  much  discussion.  The  shore  forma- 
tion, north  of  Salmon  River,  is  largely  the  steep  sand  dunes,  with  swamps 
behind  them  —  a  formation  characteristic  of  many  places  on  the  Lakes, 
especially  the  east  end  of  Ontario,  and  the  eastern  part  of  the  north  shore 
of  Erie. 

86 


LA  BARRE'S  FIASCO  87 

rendezvous  at  Niagara  whence  they  were  to  advance  under 
French  escort,  to  operate  with  La  Barre's  force. 

It  was  at  best  a  costly  and  difficult  project  to  carry  out. 
The  western  allies  —  often  allies  only  in  the  fancies  of  the 
French  —  were  by  no  means  eager  to  meet  the  Iroquois  in  the 
latter's  own  stronghold.  At  Niagara  they  were  on  the  border 
of  a  region  which  they  had  learned  to  shun.  What  followed 
the  spreading  of  La  Barre's  order  among  the  tribes  of  north- 
ern Michigan  and  Wisconsin,  has  been  much  less  dwelt  upon 
by  historians  than  the  episode  of  La  Famine;  yet  the  events 
in  the  west  and  at  Niagara  proved,  in  sequel,  of  very  grave 
consequence  to  the  French  colony,  and  demand  a  place  in  the 
story  of  the  region  here  under  special  consideration. 

From  this  point  of  view,  it  is  not  La  Barrc  who  is  the 
principal  actor,  nor  even  his  great  captains,  Durantayc 
or  Du  Lhut,  but  a  picturesque  expert  of  the  wilds,  Nicholas 
Pcrrot. 

Born  in  1644,  we  only  know,  of  his  early  years,  that  he  came 
to  Canada,  a  mere  lad,  received  some  smattering  of  educa- 
tion and  was  soon  in  the  service  of  the  Jesuits  as  donnc  or 
engage.  Accompanying  a  priest  to  a  distant  mission,  he  be- 
came the  practical  man  of  the  establishment,  looking  after  the 
necessaries  of  life  while  the  missionary  was  more  concerned 
with  things  spiritual.  Some  years  of  this  service,  the  latter 
part  of  it  among  the  Pottawatamies,  naturally  qualified  Pcr- 
rot for  independent  action.  By  1665  he  had  left  the  mission 
service  and  was  a  recogni/ed  trader,  and  for  half  a  century 
or  so  his  story,  for  the  most  part,  belongs  to  Wisconsin.  At 
times,  service  for  the  colony,  or  the  undertakings  of  trade,  car- 
ried him  far  to  the  west  and  north  and  east  ;  but  not  the  least 
adventurous  of  his  experiences  was  his  coming  to  the  Niagara 
in  the  summer  of  16S1. 

La  Barre  had  sent,  none  too  lavishly,  presents  to  the  Otta- 
was  and  other  tribes  whose  help  he  wished.  They  took  the 
guns  and  blankets  and  tobacco,  but  found  excuses.  Du  Lhut 
and  Durantayc  had  in  large  measure  failed  to  rouse  them  for 
the  expedition.  The  former  meeting  Perrot  at  Maekinac, 
urged  this  difficult  recruiting  upon  him.  No  one,  said  Du  Lhut, 


88       AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

was  so  well  qualified  for  this  work  as  Perrot,  "  because,"  says 
that  worthy,  "  of  the  ascendency  I  had  over  their  minds." 

Perrot  thereupon  set  out,  "  on  a  Sunday,  after  holy  Mass, 
to  go  among  these  nations,  who  listened  to  me  and  received  my 
presents."  They  only  delayed  to  get  their  canoes  ready,  so- 
that  eight  days  later  400  Ottawas,  including  their  chiefs  and 
veteran  warriors,  were  in  rendezvous  in  Saginaw  Bay.  Other 
bands  were  induced  to  join  in;  one  chief  visited  the  villages 
in  the  vicinity  and  after  haranguing  them,  came  back  followed 
by  100  young  men.  Perrot  was  acclaimed  leader  of  the  Ot- 
tawas;  besides  whom  there  was  a  horde  of  the  Foxes  ("  People 
of  the  Bay ")  and  Hurons,  with  a  considerable  retinue  of 
Frenchmen,  gathered  from  these  distant  posts. 

The  great  flotilla  set  out  for  Niagara,  but  the  passage  down 
the  Lakes  was  a  succession  of  difficulties.  The  third  day  out 
from  Saginaw  a  French  soldier  accidentally  shot  himself  and 
the  Ottawas  saw  in  his  death  presage  of  evil  to  come.  A  little 
later,  among  the  islands  of  the  Detroit  River,  a  herd  of  deer 
was  seen,  swimming,  and  a  young  man,  firing  upon  them  from 
a  canoe,  broke  his  brother's  arm.  "  This  second  accident," 
writes  Perrot,  "  made  such  an  impression  on  the  Ottawas  that 
they  would  have  turned  face-about  if  I  had  not  persuaded  the 
father  of  the  wounded  man  to  oblige  his  son  to  declare  pub- 
licly that  he  had  only  left  his  own  country  in  the  resolve  to  per- 
ish, arms  in  hand,  facing  the  Iroquois."  He  did,  in  fact,  die 
later  of  his  wound,  and  it  required  all  of  Perrot's  tact  and  per- 
suasion to  hold  the  Ottawas. 

In  Lake  Erie,  tempestuous  weather  drove  them  ashore,  two 
leagues  from  Long  Point,  and  during  the  eight  days  that  they 
waited  the  Ottawas  grew  more  and  more  restive,  complaining 
that,  if  they  were  away  from  home  so  long,  their  families  would 
starve.  As  they  appeared  quite  on  the  point  of  deserting,  Per- 
rot taunted  them  with  cowardice. 

"  It  is  not  without  reason,"  he  jeered,  "  that  you  weep  for 
your  women.  ...  It  is  surprising  that  you  have  come  even 
this  far.  You  are  dastards  who  know  nothing  of  war,  vou 
have  never  killed  men,  you  have  never  eaten  one  unless  he  were 
given  to  you  bound  hand  and  foot." 


LA  BARRE'S  FIASCO  89 

It  was  a  bold  course  to  take,  surrounded  thus  by  hundreds 
of  angry  savages,  but  Perrot  knew  his  ground.  They  did  not 
lay  hands  on  him,  but  they  did  retort  with  every  vile  word 
which  shame  and  anger  could  suggest.  "  You  shall  see,"  they 
cried,  "  whether  we  are  men,  when  it  comes  to  fighting,  and 
if  you  don't  do  your  duty,  like  us,  we  will  break  your  head." 

"  You  need  not  take  that  trouble,"  answered  Perrot,  "  for  at 
the  first  war-cry  you  will  take  to  your  heels." 

A  result  of  these  taunts  was  that  the  Ottawa  chiefs  stirred 
up  their  braves,  and  strove  among  themselves  as  to  which 
should  lead  the  others,  in  the  great  battle  with  the  Iroquois,  to 
which  La  Barre  had  summoned  them.  Unaware  of  it,  Perrot 
had  somewhat  overshot  the  mark,  and  was  soon  to  find  himself 
in  grave  danger  from  an  excess  of  zeal,  more  embarrassing  than 
the  cowardice  of  which  he  had  accused  them. 

Another  contretemps  befell.  During  the  detention  at  Long 
Point,  some  Ottawas  in  the  woods,  amusing  themselves  by 
whistling  like  deer,  were  mistaken  by  some  Frenchmen  for  the 
animals  they  imitated ;  a  glimpse  of  white,  seen  through  a 
thicket  whence  the  whistling  came,  was  taken  by  the  Frenchman 
for  the  breast  of  a  stag,  at  which  he  fired ;  wounding  not  only 
the  wearer  of  the  shirt,  but  another  Ottawa  who  followed  him. 
Once  more  the  camp  of  the  Ottawas  was  thrown  into  a  fever 
of  excitement,  anger  and  fear  contending;  they  were  plainly 
foredoomed ;  but  some  of  the  bolder  accused  the  French  of 
treachery :  it  was  high  time  to  abandon  the  expedition  when  the 
French  had  begun  to  kill  them. 

Once  more  Perrot  assembled  the  chiefs  and  reasoned  with 
them.  The  wounded  man  was  brought  forward  to  prove  that 
though  wounded  he  was  not  dead.  LTnder  Perrot's  stimulating 
influence  this  one  declared  that  he  was  going  to  die  further  on 
— beyond  the  Niagara,  in  the  land  of  the  Iroquois  —  and  that 
he  had  left  his  own  country  for  that  purpose.  One  of  the 
braves,  uncle  to  the  wounded  man,  addressed  the  crowd.  ';  You 
may  all  quit,  and  go  home,'"  he  cried,  "  but  as  for  me  and  my 
nephew,  we  shall  follow  the  French  everywhere."  An  example 
of  this  sort  sufficed.  Once  more  the  Ottawa  hordes  were  pla- 
cated, and  all  continued  the  route. 


90       AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

Could  one  have  stood,  on  a  September  day  of  that  long-van- 
ished year,  on  the  sightly  bluff  where  now  citizens  of  Buffalo 
love  to  resort  of  a  summer  evening,  overlooking  the  outlet 
of  Lake  Erie,  he  would  have  gazed  upon  a  wonderful  sight. 
Paddling  around  the  point  of  the  western  (now  the  Canada) 
shore,  and  gliding  into  the  swift  current  of  the  Niagara,  came 
canoe  after  canoe,  the  large  decorated  war  canoes  of  the  Up- 
per Lakes,  manned  by  a  horde  of  lithe,  stalwart,  naked  war- 
riors, with  much,  no  doubt,  of  grease  and  vermilion,  something 
of  feathers  and  bear-claw  necklaces,  and  beyond  question,  oc- 
casionally a  din  of  yelling.  More  and  more  they  came,  an 
endless  flotilla,  until  the  river  as  far  as  eye  could  scan,  was 
alive  with  them ;  borne  swiftly  down,  until,  where  the  river  di- 
vides and  slackens,  above  Grand  Island,  they  swept  into  the 
western  channel,  crossing  at  Buckhorn  Island,  and  before  long 
landed  above  the  Falls  and  began  the  great  portage.  There 
were  more  than  700  warriors,  all  told:  Some  600  Ottawas, 
Foxes,  Sacs  and  Hurons ;  with  150  French,  summoned  from 
many  a  remote  post  of  western  lake  and  prairie,  scarcely  less 
wild  than  their  red-skinned  comrades ;  and  with  them,  among 
other  officers,  Du  Lhut,  the  greatest  of  the  coureurs  du  bois, 
Durantaye,  and  Perrot.  Red  men  and  white,  it  was  the  great- 
est oncoming  the  Niagara  had  known  within  recorded  days. 
No  such  retinue  attended  La  Salle,  or  the  arduous  progress  of 
the  missionary  priests.  The  West  had  come,  under  special 
spur,  and  in  league  with  France,  in  angry  mood,  to  smite  once 
and  for  all,  the  mighty  League  of  the  Iroquois. 

While  this  "  Army  of  the  South,"  as  La  Barre  called  it, 
was  making  the  portage  around  the  falls,  spies  were  sent  down 
to  the  mouth  of  the  river,  not  so  much  to  look  out  for  ene- 
mies, as  to  see  if  any  vessels  had  corne.  While  still  in  their 
wigwams  at  Mackinac  or  Green  Bay  they  had  been  made  ex- 
pectant of  finding  here,  arms,  ammunition  and  food.  They 
found  nothing,  nor  sign  of  any  boat  or  messenger.  The 
French,  then,  had  deceived  them,  perhaps  entrapped  them ! 
Bringing  their  boats  and  burdens  by  the  old  path  down  Lewis- 
ton  Heights,  and  paddling  down  the  quiet  stretch  of  river  to 


LA  BARRE'S  FIASCO  91 

Lake  Ontario,  came  the  horde  of  western  tribesmen,  and  with 
them  the  perplexed  French.  Flaming  with  passion,  the  Ottawa 
chiefs  demanded  a  council. 

"  You  have  told  us,"  cried  their  spokesman,  "  that  we  are 
not  men.  We  will  show  you,  Frenchmen,  that  we  are  brave ; 
and  we  tell  you,  that  since  you  have  lied  to  us,  promising  us 
fine  things  which  we  don't  see,  we  are  going  to  the  Iroquois 
village." 

Perrot  and  his  companions  tried  to  dissuade  them  from  the 
rash  attack  which  their  threat  implied,  and  urged  them  to 
wait.  "  The  vessels  have  been  delayed  by  head  winds,"  they 
said,  but  the  Indians  doubted.  Then  it  was  proposed  that  the 
chiefs  go  on  with  the  French  in  their  canoes  by  the  north  shore, 
to  Fort  Frontenac,  "  where  the  French  would  give  us  news  of 
the  army ;  and  there  we  would  await  the  army  or  follow  it  if 
it  had  taken  the  field."  The  Ottawas  now  taunted  the  French, 
for  lack  of  valor;  and  while  some  were  for  going  to  Frontenac, 
others  clamored  for  an  advance  on  the  Iroquois,  the  braves 
making  a  great  hubbub.  The  French  argued  that  it  was  im- 
prudent to  lead  300  Frenchmen  against  1500  Senecas,  under 
the  escort  of  the  Ottawas,  already  exhausted  with  the  march 
and  under  the  influence  of  bad  omens.  Messengers  went  to  the 
Ottawa  camp,  to  reason  with  them.  As  soon  as  they  were 
told  that  the  French,  who  until  then  had  been  masters  of  the 
march,  now  gave  them  liberty  to  lead,  "  they  did  not  hesi- 
tate," says  the  old  historian  La  Fotherie,  "  to  put  their  canoes 
in  the  water  and  set  out  on  the  north  shore  route,  which  they 
had  ardently  wished  to  do,  leaving  behind  those  of  a  contrary 
opinion." 

Camp  was  made  that  night  on  the  lake  shore.  At  midnight 
they  were  startled  by  the  report  of  a  gun  across  the  water 
opposite  the  camp.  "  To  arms  !  "  they  cried.  "  The  Ottawas 
showed  their  /eal  by  running  to  the  guards.  Then  they  heard 
a  voice  which  said  in  the  Ottawa  tongue,  that  a  French  vessel 
had  come  to  Niagara.  Everything  that  had  passed  was  for- 
gotten and  joy  became  universal.  Fight  Ottawas  arrived  im- 
mediately in  a  canoe,  and  reported  that  a  barque  had  anchored 


92  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

the  evening  before  in  view  of  Niagara.  The  officers  dis- 
patched a  canoe  to  inform  [the  vessel]  of  the  arrival  of  the 
Ottawas,  who  would  at  once  repair  there." 

"  When  the  Ottawas  learned,  on  returning  to  Niagara, 
that  peace  had  been  made  with  the  Iroquois,  they  belched  a 
thousand  abuses  upon  the  French,  who  however  persuaded 
the  more  important  chiefs  to  go  to  Montreal  to  see  the  Gov- 
ernor General." 

There  appear  to  be  but  two  contemporary  or  original  ac- 
counts of  the  coming  of  the  western  tribes  to  the  Niagara  in 
1684:  Perrot's  own  journal,  and  the  history  of  La  Potherie, 
first  published  in  1722.  Both  are  at  times  obscure.  La  Hon- 
tan,  who  was  with  La  Barre  in  the  expedition  to  La  Famine, 
merely  alludes  to  the  western  recruits.  La  Barre  himself,  in 
his  memoir  dated  Quebec,  October  1,  1684,  says:  "I  had  or- 
dered one  of  the  barks  to  go  to  Niagara  to  notify  the  army  of 
the  South  to  return  by  Lake  Erie  to  Missilimakinack ;  she  had 
a  favorable  passage ;  found  it  had  arrived,  only  six  hours  pre- 
viously, to  the  number  of  700  men,  150  French  and  the  re- 
mainder Indians."  A  number  of  the  chiefs  accompanied  the 
French  officers  to  Montreal  where  La  Barre  did  what  he  could 
to  placate  them.  As  for  the  horde  of  disappointed  savages, 
they  made  their  sullen  way  up  the  Niagara  and  back  over  the 
hundreds  of  weary  miles  to  their  western  lodges.  There  was 
no  heart  left  in  them,  in  spite  of  all  their  boasting,  for  an 
attack  on  the  Iroquois ;  but  there  was  kindled  a  great  resent- 
ment towards  the  French. 


In  1683  there  was  issued  from  the  Paris  printing  shop  of 
Sebastian  Hure's  widow,  "  Rue  St.  Jacques,  at  the  Picture  of 
St.  Jerome,  near  St.  Severin,"  the  first  and  most  trustworthy 
of  Father  Hennepin's  works,  the  "  Description  dc  la  Louisianc." 
This  little  duodecimo,  long  since  become  one  of  the  scarce  and 
costly  Americana  sought  for  and  treasured  by  discriminating 
bibliophiles,  not  only  gave  to  the  world  the  first  circumstantial 
account  of  scenes  and  events  in  the  incomparable  Niagara 
region  during  La  Salle's  visits,  sojourn  and  departure,  1678-9, 


LA  BARRF/S  FIASCO  93 

but  made  plain  alike  to  France  and  to  her  jealous  neighbors, 
the  audacious  enterprise  with  which  the  courtiers  of  Louis 
were  pressing  on  in  the  far  wilderness  of  America  to  gain  new 
dominions  for  his  crown.  It  is  a  striking  fact  that,  although 
the  adventures  of  La  Salle,  as  graphically  narrated  by  the 
Recollect,  must  have  attracted  considerable  attention,  and 
could  hardly  have  escaped  the  cognizance  of  Charles  II.  and  his 
ministers,  yet  no  English  publisher  seemed  to  think  it  worth 
while  to  make  what  no  English  public  called  for  —  an  Eng- 
lish translation  of  the  book.  True,  the  English  of  that  day, 
who  could  read  at  all,  were  quite  as  likely  to  know  French 
as  English ;  yet  translations  were  then  published  of  other 
French  works.  The  "  Louisiane  "  was  not  translated.  New 
editions  did  not  follow  each  other  in  the  Sixteenth  century 
with  the  rapidity  of  the  present,  but  their  issuance  was  per- 
haps more  significant.  In  1684-  another  Paris  printer,  Amable 
Auroy,  issued  more  copies  of  the  priest's  wonderful  adventures, 
and  four  years  later  still  another  Paris  edition  appeared.  The 
work  was  printed  in  Italian  at  Bologna,  in  1686,  in  Dutch  at 
Amsterdam  in  1688,  and  in  German  at  Nuremberg  in  1689  and 
again  in  1692.  Of  this  and  Henncpin's  other  works  edition 
followed  edition,  in  several  languages  and  with  many  variations, 
to  test  or  tantalize  the  modern  bibliographer ;  yet  the 
"  Louisiane  "  was  not  reprinted  in  England,  nor  has  it  been 
from  that  day  to  this  ;  though  to  no  people  in  the  world,  the 
French  excepted,  did  these  inland  exploratory  enterprises 
carry  so  much  significance.  To  the  English  it  was  the  sig- 
nificance of  a  menace.  The  only  edition  of  Hcnnepin's 
"  Louisiane  "  in  the  English  tongue  was  published  in  New 
York  in  1880,  by  the  translator,  the  indefatigable  John  Gil- 
mary  Shea. 

It  was  in  the  same  year  that  the  now  quaint  and  rare 
"  Louisia?ic  "  was  sent  out  from  the  Widow  Ilure's  shop,  that 
Colonel  Thomas  Dongan  was  sent  out  by  the  British  Crown  to 
be  Governor  of  the  colony  of  New  York.  The  colony  had  been 
English  less  than  10  years;  it  was  still  only  English  by  treaty, 
rather  than  by  any  preponderance  of  English  population.  Lp 
to  his  coming,  the  Niagara  frontier,  as  a  vantage  ground  for 


94  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

trade  or  a  strategic  point  for  war,  seems  not  to  have  attracted 
the  attention  of  either  the  English  or  the  Dutch.  But  Don- 
gan  immediately  turned  his  thoughts  to  the  far  western 
regions  inhabited  by  the  Five  Nations  whose  allegiance  was  so 
essential  not  only  to  the  security  of  the  English  towns,  but  to 
the  prosecution  of  the  fur  trade.  In  1684,  at  Albany,  a  treaty 
was  held  with  these  nations.  The  Senecas  were  represented 
and  formally  submitted  to  King  Charles  and  by  that  acquies- 
cence nominally  put  the  region  under  the  British  rule.  It 
may  be  noted,  in  passing,  that  the  next  year  when  the  Duke  of 
York  came  to  the  throne,  he  decreed  that  the  Archbishop  of 
Canterbury  should  hold  ecclesiastical  jurisdiction  over  the 
whole  colony  of  New  York.  Those  students  who  delight  in 
determining  the  first  visitor,  the  first  settler,  the  first  in  au- 
thority and  the  like,  for  a  given  region,  will  not  fail  to  note 
the  significance  of  the  above  decree.  As  a  matter  of  fact, 
however,  nothing  is  more  unlikely  than  that  the  Senecas  who 
sojourned  on  the  Niagara  at  this  period,  or  even  the  Dutch 
and  English  traders  who  gave  them  rum  for  beaver-skins,  ever 
heard  of  the  Archbishop  of  Canterbury,  or  cared  a  copper  for 
his  ecclesiastical  jurisdiction,  either  on  the  Niagara  or  even  in 
the  settlements  on  the  Hudson.2 

Many  a  student  of  this  period  of  American  history  has  found 
delight  in  the  correspondence  between  Governor  Dongan  of 
New  York,  and  La  Barre's  successor,  the  Marquis  de  Denon- 
ville.  Their  letters  are  not  only  delightful,  but  exceedingly 
illuminating.  The  official  exchange  of  epistles  began  with 
formality  and  courtesy ;  but  presently  each  was  accusing  the 
other  of  bad  faith  and  underhand  dealing.  Strong  feeling 
was  developed,  and  as  it  blazed  into  wrath,  the  truth  came 
out.  Chief  among  matters  in  dispute  was  the  right  of  the 
English,  which  Dongan  claimed  and  Denonville  indignantly 
denied,  to  trade  with  the  Western  tribes.  Dongan,  on  the  other 
hand,  taxed  the  French  with  violation  of  treaty  agreements  in 

2  Dongan's  instructions  laid  emphasis  on  the  necessity  of  winning  over 
the  Iroquois  from  the  French.  Sec,  Sir  John  Werden  to  Dongan,  Nov.  1, 
1081;  same  to  same,  Dec.  -1,  IfiSt;  etc.  In  August,  1fiS,>,  \ve  find  Dongan 
recommending  that  the  Fnglish  build  a  fort  "on  this  side  of  the  great  lake," 
i.  e.,  Ontario;  and  in  Feb.,  HiS?r  that  one  be  built  at  "Oneigra." 


LA  BARRE'S  FIASCO  95 

attempting  to  establish  themselves  on  the  Niagara.  The  con- 
tention, involving  as  it  did,  the  British  claim  to  right  of  access 
to  the  Lakes,  has  received  some  attention  from  historians,  but 
not,  as  is  called  for  in  the  present  study,  with  particular  re- 
gard to  the  Niagara  region. 

What  with  the  work  of  the  missionaries,  of  La  Salle  and  his 
companions,  the  French  had  come  to  look  upon  the  Great  Lakes 
as  their  own.  Dongan,  caring  only  for  the  region  because  of 
the  beaver  trade,  ignored  and  denied  these  sweeping  claims. 
He  knew  something  of  La  Salle's  operations  on  the  Niagara. 
Now  early  in  1686  word  came  to  him  by  a  deserter  from  Canada 
that  the  French  proposed  to  establish  themselves  there  once 
more;  whereupon  he  wrote  from  Albany,  May  22d,  to  Denon- 
ville : 

"  I  am  informed  that  you  are  intended  to  build  a  fort  at  a 
place  called  Ohniagero  [Niagara]  on  this  side  of  the  lake 
within  my  Master's  territory*  without  question  (I  cannot  be- 
leev  it)  that  a  person  that  has  your  reputation  in  the  world 
would  follow  the  steps  of  Mons.  Labarr,  and  be  ill  advised 
...  to  make  disturbance  .  .  .  for  a  little  pelttrcc." 

Denonville  replied  that  the  deserter's  story  was  "  devoid  of 
all  foundation,"  yet  wanted  it  understood  that  the  region  in 
question  was  indisputably  under  French  control.  "  Certainly 
you  are  not  well  informed,"  he  wrote,  "  of  all  the  entries  into 
possession  [prises  dc  possessions]  which  have  been  made  in 
the  name  of  the  King  my  Master,  and  of  the  establishments  of 
long  standing  which  we  have  on  the  land  and  on  the  lakes ; 
and  as  I  have  no  doubt  but  our  Masters  will  easily  agree  among 
themselves  ...  I  willingly  consent  with  you  that  their 
Majesties  regulate  the  limits  among  themselves,  wishing  noth- 
ing more  than  to  live  with  you  in  good  understanding;  but 
to  that  end,  sir,  it  would  be  very  a  propos  that  a  gentleman,  so 
worthy  as  you,  should  not  grant  protection  to  all  the  rogues, 
vagabonds  and  thieves  who  desert  and  seek  refuge  with  you, 
and  who,  to  acquire  some  merit  with  you,  believe  they  cannot 
do  better  than  to  tell  you  many  impertinances  of  us,  which  will 
have  no  end  so  long  as  you  will  listen  to  them." 

Dongan   was    not    the   man    to   let    such   an   observation   pass 


96  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

without  retort.  He  did  more:  he  fitted  out  an  English  expedi- 
tion and  sent  it  up  the  Lakes  after  furs.  It  is  the  first  known 
appearance  on  these  Lakes  of  any  white  men  save  in  French  in- 
terest. 

No  detailed  account  of  that  expedition  is  known.  We  do 
know  that  in  the  fall  of  1685  Dongan  licensed  certain  men  of 
his  colony,  to  trade  English  goods  among  the  tribes  to  the 
westward.  He  granted  such  a  permit  to  Abel  Marion  la  Fon- 
taine, one  of  the  deserters  of  whom  the  French  Governor  had 
complained.  His  name  appears  in  various  forms  in  the  early 
records,  but  the  "  Marion  "  of  one  report,  the  "  Abell  Mar- 
rion  "  of  another  and  "  La  Fontaine  Marion  "  of  a  third,  are 
one  and  the  same.  As  he  had  experience  on  the  Lakes,  his  pres- 
ent service  was  to  act  as  guide  and  interpreter.  Leadership  of 
the  expedition  was  entrusted  to  Johannes  Rooseboom,  a  young 
Dutchman  of  Albany,  member  of  a  family  long  prominent  in 
New  York  colony.  Eleven  canoes,  laden  with  goods  for  bar- 
ter and  the  indispensable  rum,  set  out  from  Schenectady,  made 
their  way  up  the  Mohawk  and  by  the  Oneida  lake  route  to 
Ontario.  Skirting  the  south  shore  to  Niagara,  they  made  the 
great  portage  and  paddled  into  Lake  Erie  —  the  first  white 
men,  not  French  or  in  French  service,  known  to  have  reached 
these  waters.  It  was  a  bold  and  hazardous  undertaking,  but 
Rooseboom  proved  equal  to  it.  A  swift  course  was  taken  to 
the  LTpper  Lakes,  where  they  were  welcomed  by  the  Hurons  and 
Ottawas,  who  had  never  received  so  much  for  their  furs,  or 
tasted  a  more  agreeable  liquor  than  the  rum  which  answered  its 
purpose  even  better  than  the  Frenchman's  brandy.  With 
canoes  deeply  laden  with  furs,  Rooseboom  made  his  way  back, 
unharmed,  notwithstanding  that  Denonville  sent  an  officer  to 
Niagara  to  stop  him.  Rooseboom  merits  some  distinction  in 
the  annals  of  the  Great  Lakes,  for  this  achievement.  The  ex- 
pedition had  been  accomplished  in  three  months,  and  Dongan 
was  so  pleased  that  he  proposed  another  for  the  next  year. 

His  correspondence  with  Denonville,  after  this  adventure, 
naturally  did  not  abate  in  plain  speaking.  Both  gentlemen 
were  Catholics,  and  the  French  Governor  had  counted  on  this 
unity  of  faith  for  some  cooperation,  at  least  in  matters  per- 


LA  BARHE'S  FIASCO  97 

taining  to  the  spiritual  welfare  of  the  savages:  but  Dongan, 
good  Catholic  as  he  was,  was  ever  alert  for  the  interests  of  his 
own  king  and  colony.3  Moreover,  he  had  the  Irish  gift  of  wit. 
When  Denonville  indignantly  wrote:  "Think  you,  Sir,  that 
Religion  will  make  any  progress  whilst  your  merchants  will  sup- 
ply, as  they  do,  can  dc  -vie  in  abundance,  which  as  you  ought 
to  know,  converts  the  savages  into  demons  and  their  cabins  into 
counterparts  and  theatres  of  Hell,"  Dongan  blandly  replied: 
"  Certainly  our  Rum  doth  as  little  hurt  as  your  Brandy  and 
in  the  opinion  of  Christians  is  much  more  wholesome." 

In  due  time  —  nor  was  it  long,  for  news  spread  fast  even  in 
those  days  —  Denonville  learned  of  this  English  invasion.  Re- 
porting it  to  the  Minister,  Seignelay,  he  urged  the  construc- 
tion of  a  strong  French  post  at  Niagara,  to  put  a  stop  to  fur- 
ther English  expeditions. 

The  year  1686  was  a  year  of  preparation.  Denonville  had 
no  intention  of  repeating  La  Barre's  fiasco  of  1684.  Immedi- 
ately on  declaring  war,  he  wrote,  early  in  the  year,  to  the  Min- 
ister, his  intention  was  "  to  fortify  in  the  best  possible  manner 
the  post  at  Niagara ;  this  is  of  the  greatest  consequence  in  order 
both  to  furnish  the  people  facilities  of  getting  their  peltries 
from  the  Outawas  and  other  distant  places,  and  to  secure  a 
retreat  for  the  Illinois,  in  case  they  be  pressed  by  the  Iroquois. 
But  it  would  be  proper  to  send  masons  from  France,  as  the 
wages  of  those  of  this  country  are  3  livres  and  3  livrcs  10  sous 
a  day,  and  they  are  moreover  indifferent  workmen.  It  is  so 
much  the  more  necessary  to  fortify  that  post,"  he  added,  "  as  it 
is  to  be  feared  that  the  English  will  sei/e  on  it,  if  not  antici- 
pated." The  general  apprehension  of  all  Canada  spoke  in 
that  sentence.  Since  the  advent  of  the  vigorous  Dongan  the 
apparition  of  the  English  on  the  Niagara  haunted  every  hour 
of  the  French.  The  Minister  replied  in  due  season  that  His 
Majesty  approved  of  fortifying  the  mouth  of  the  Niagara,  but 
the  Governor  must  be  very  careful  to  keep  expenses  down  :  and 
the  faithful  Colbert  lays  down  two  things  to  be  observed: 

s  A  tablet  in  (lov.  Donjr.'in's  memory,  erected  in  1911,  on  St.  Peter's 
church  in  Barclay  Street.  N'ew  York  City,  by  the  Knights  of  Columbus,  is 
a  merited  if  tardv  tribute  to  his  worth  and  services. 


98  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

First,  Denonville  was  not  to  build  but  one  fort  a  year,  begin- 
ning with  the  most  urgent ;  second,  he  was  to  "  construct  only 
slight  fortifications,  suitable  for  warding  off  a  surprise,  as  he 
has  not  to  do  with  any  power  capable  of  carrying  on  a  siege, 
so  that  a  simple  wall  with  loop-holes  (creneaux),  and  a  ditch 
and  palisades  outside,  are  the  only  works  admissible  in  that 
country."  The  King  further  told  the  Governor  that  he  must 
make  the  soldiers  do  the  work,  but  that  "  4  or  five  masons  and 
20  laborers  "  should  be  sent.  It  is  touching  to  find,  in  this 
same  letter,  an  anxious  inquiry  from  the  King  as  to  the  where- 
abouts of  La  Salle.  "  Let  him  [Denonville]  communicate 
every  particular  he  will  learn  of  that  gentleman,  and  afford 
him  every  protection  he  will  stand  in  need  of,  should  he  return." 

When  Denonville  upbraided  Dongan,  that  vigorous  adminis- 
trator warned  him  not  to  build  any  fort  "  at  a  place  called 
Ohniagero  [Niagara]  on  this  side  of  the  Lake  —  within  my 
Master's  territories,  without  question,"  and  immediately  set 
about  fitting  out  another  expedition. 

Operations  were  planned  on  a  more  ambitious  scale  than  in 
the  preceding  year.  The  adventurers  were  to  go  up  the  Lakes 
and  among  the  western  tribes,  in  two  divisions.  The  first  di- 
vision left  Albany  September  11,  1686.  Captain  Rooseboom 
again  led  the  party,  with  the  refugee  La  Fontaine  as  guide. 
Some  Englishmen  may  have  been  included,  but  most  of  the  men 
were  youths  of  Albany,  members  of  prominent  Dutch  families. 
Among  them  were  sons  of  Arent  Schuyler,  and  Johannes,  eldest 
son  of  Jan  Jansen  Bleccker.  Numbering  34  in  all  ("  29 
Xtians,  3  Mohoukcs  and  2  Mahikander  Indians  "  —  i.  e.  Mo- 
hawks and  Mohicans),  with  20  canoes,  the  expedition  came  as 
before,  up  the  Mohawk  and  through  Oneida  Lake,  its  passage 
being  promptly  reported  to  Denonville  by  the  Jesuit  James  de 
Lambervillc ;  but  though  the  French  might  learn  of  their  pass- 
ing they  could  not  stay  them.  Rooseboom  and  his  band,  which 
included  two  Indians  from  each  of  the  Five  Nations,  were  to 
winter  among  the  Iroquois,  proceeding  to  their  western  trade 
in  the  spring.  This  they  appear  to  have  done,  though  no 
record  is  known  of  their  experiences  until  spring.  Having 
passed  through  Oneida  Lake  in  the  fall,  as  we  know  from 


LA  BARRE'S  FIASCO  99 

Lambcrvillc's  report,  and  relying  on  their  canoes  for  further 
progress,  they  probably  wintered  in  the  vicinity  of  the  Oswego, 
coming  on  to  the  Niagara  in  the  spring;  unless  they  had  passed 
the  Niagara  before  winter  checked  them,  in  which  case  they 
msut  have  hibernated  at  some  spot  on  the  north  shore  of  Lake 
Eric.  In  either  event  they  were  the  first  white  men,  not  French, 
to  sojourn  in  the  region.  In  May  they  continued  their  way 
towards  Mackinac. 

As  soon  as  the  waterways  were  free  from  ice,  in  the  spring 
of  1687,  Dongan  dispatched  a  second  division  of  this  party  of 
traders,  entrusting  its  command  to  an  interesting  character, 
"  a  Scotch  gent  named  McGregor."  Dongan's  "  Scotch  gent  " 
was  Colonel  Patrick  MacGregorie,  who  had  come  to  America 
from  Scotland,  with  a  number  of  followers,  in  1684.  According 
to  Dongan,  lie  had  formerly  served  in  France,  and,  plausibly, 
brought  with  him  certain  prejudices  which  in  the  New  York 
colony  did  not  impair  his  value  for  the  bold  service  he  was 
now  to  undertake.  After  an  apparent  residence  on  Staten 
Island  he  removed  to  the  Highlands,  turned  his  attention  to  the 
Indian  trade  and  mastered  the  Indian  tongue  —  probably  the 
Mohawk.  It  is  plain  that  he  enjoyed  the  friendship  of  Don- 
gan, who  in  1686  appointed  him  Muster  Master  General  of  the 
Militia  of  the  Province  of  New  York,  and  soon  after,  in  the 
same  year,  commissioned  him  for  this  expedition.  Dongan 
gave  him  orders  "  not  to  disturb  or  meddle  with  the  French. 
I  hope,"  lie  adds,  "  they  will  not  meddle  with  him."  The  hope 
was  natural  but  futile,  for  the  Scotch  colonel  was  considerably 
meddled  with  before  he  got  back. 

MacGregorie's  band  set  out  with  20  laden  canoes.  Like 
Rooscboom's  party,  they  made  the  dread  Niagara  portage  — 
dreaded  both  for  its  toil,  and  for  the  risk  of  attack  —  and 
passed  swiftly  through  Lake  Krie,  unharmed.  Promptly 
learning  of  their  passage,  Denonvillo  sent  Desbergeres  and  an 
armed  force  to  the  Niagara,  to  intercept  their  return.  Des- 
bergeres and  his  men  haunted  the  lower  reaches  of  the  river, 
but  events  to  the  westward  made  their  precautions  unneces- 
sary. 

The  two  English  parties  had  been  ordered  to  join  forces  at 


100  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

or  near  Mackinac,  and  on  completing  their  trading  to  return 
by  the  Niagara  route  to  Albany,  under  the  command  of  Mac- 
Gregorie.  All  would  have  gone  well  had  the  French  been 
less  alert;  but  Denonville,  having  resolved  to  attack  the  Iro- 
quois  in  this  summer  of  1687,  had  sent  orders  to  his  lieutenants 
at  western  posts  to  come  on  to  Niagara,  with  such  French  and 
Indian  forces  as  they  could  muster,  and  join  his  army  in  its 
proposed  raid.  Obeying  these  orders,  early  in  May,  La 
Durantaye  with  a  horde  of  savage  followers,  paddling  south 
along  the  Lake  Huron  coast  some  60  miles  from  Mackinac,  sud- 
denly encountered  Rooseboom's  party,  bound  north.  No  spe- 
cial correspondent  or  moving  pictures  have  recorded  for  us 
what  happened,  nor  is  there  any  very  graphic  account  of  it. 
Something  of  struggle,  fierce  and  picturesque,  there  inevitably 
was.  Rooseboom  and  his  men  were  all  made  prisoners  and 
their  goods  "  which  would  have  bought  8,000  beavers,"  were 
confiscated  and  pillaged.  There  appears  to  have  been  a  re- 
turn to  Mackinac,  no  doubt  a  debauch  and  a  distribution  of 
English  goods  on  far  easier  terms  to  the  savage  recipient  than 
even  the  unlucky  Dutchmen  had  contemplated. 

Soon  Durantaye  and  his  greatly  augmented  company,  in- 
cluding the  prisoners,  took  their  exultant  way  once  more  down 
Lake  Huron.  Below  Fort  St.  Joseph,  "  at  the  Detroit  of 
Lake  Eric,"  they  fell  in  with  DuLhut,  from  the  Detroit  post, 
and  Tonty  who  had  come  on  from  the  Illinois  country,  with  his 
wild  recruits.  All  then  coming  on  towards  the  Niagara,  they 
encountered  MacGregorie  and  his  party.  The  disparity  of 
force  was  too  great  for  long  resistance.  The  three  French 
officers  now  had  a  horde  of  savages  —  by  one  account  1500. 
That  MacGregorie  was  a  stout-hearted  adventurer,  may  be 
granted;  but  surrender  was  preferable  to  death.  The  French 
appropriated  all  his  trading  goods,  "  which  by  computation 
would  have  purchased  to  that  Troop  eight  or  nine  thousand 
Beavers";  and  with  the  two  parties  of  English  captives,  con- 
tinued on  the  way  to  Niagara.  Both  divisions  of  Dongan's 
force  had  been  well  supplied  with  ruin,  which  some  of  the  west- 
ern Indians  had  never  tasted.  "  The  French  divided  all  the 
Merchandize  among  the  Indians,  but  kept  the  Rum  to  them- 


LA  BARRE'S  FIASCO  101 

selves,  and  got  all  drunk,"  says  Colden's  early  chronicle.  It 
was  a  critical  time,  for  while  the  carouse  was  on,  a  part  of  the 
Indians  were  trying  to  persuade  another  part  to  kill  the  French 
and  cast  in  their  lot  with  the  English.  These  arguments  failed, 
and  as  soon  as  the  rum  allowed,  the  consolidated  expedition  con- 
tinued its  way  toward  Niagara. 

It  is  a  picture  which  the  imagination  may  be  allowed  to 
dwell  upon:  the  triumphant  French,  with  their  English  and 
Dutch  prisoners  under  guard,  if  not  in  thongs,  and  none  too 
tenderly  cared  for;  the  horde  of  exultant  and  painted  savages 
from  the  north  and  west.  The  advance  was  by  canoe,  a  pic- 
turesque train  of  crowded  barques,  the  red  warriors  making 
the  wooded  walls  of  Lake  Erie  echo  with  their  cries.  French, 
Dutch,  English  and  Indians  together,  it  surpassed  in  diversity 
and  in  numbers  La  Barre's  "  Army  of  the  South  "  of  1684. 

It  was  no  slight  achievement  for  Durantaye,  Tonty  and  Du 
Lhut  to  have  gathered  this  host  of  western  Indians,  and  to 
bring  them  in  fair  accord  to  the  banks  of  the  Niagara,  scene 
of  their  disappointment  of  three  years  before.  That  these 
officers  had  thus  been  able  to  overcome  the  natural  resentment 
of  the  western  tribes  towards  the  French  speaks  well  for  their 
tact  and  ability  in  so  difficult  a  service.  The  savages  were  no 
doubt  strengthened  for  the  time  being  in  their  allegiance  to  the 
French  by  the  two-fold  victory  on  the  Lakes.  For  the  mo- 
ment, among  the  motley  horde  at  the  mouth  of  the  Niagara, 
British  influence  had  disappeared. 

Whoever  attempts  to  trace  the  story  of  the  Niagara  fron- 
tier at  this  period  in  all  its  bearings  will  find  himself  led  far 
afield.  While  Dongan  was  so  stoutly  maintaining  his  sov- 
ereign's rights,  that  sovereign  himself,  swayed  by  the  exigencies 
of  European  politics,  was  taking  steps  which  largely  nullified 
Dongan's  efforts.  Louis  had  sent  to  London  a  special  am- 
bassador, the  Count  d'Avaux,  "  on  purpose  "  to  bring  about  an 
amicable  settlement  of  disputed  boundaries  in  America  —  which 
meant  Hudson's  Bay  to  the  north,  the  Niagara  and  Lakes  region 
to  the  south.  It  was  found  "  a  thing  which  it  was  not  possible 
to  decide."  Later,  King  James  through  his  Ministers  pro- 
posed a  Treaty  of  Neutrality.  This  treaty,  signed  at  White- 


102  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

hall  November  26,4  1686,  pledged  the  rival  Powers  to  maintain 
peace  between  their  subjects  in  America,  and  that  neither 
should  interfere  with  the  other  in  his  war  upon  "  wild  Indians." 
The  treaty  did  not  mention  the  Iroquois  as  subjects  of  Great 
Britain,  and  therefore  virtually  authorized  Denonville  to  con- 
tinue his  operations  against  them,  while  it  restrained  Dongan 
from  interfering.  This  treaty  was  received  at  New  York,  and 
published  as  law  required,  June  8,  1687.  Anthony  L'Espinard 
of  Albany  was  dispatched  to  Canada  with  a  copy  of  it  for 
Denonville's  edification.  That  official  however  had  already 
received  a  copy  of  it  direct  from  King  Louis,  with  orders  to 
execute  it.  More  important  yet  was  the  coming  of  800  French 
regulars,  under  the  command  of  Philippe  de  Rigaud,  Chevalier 
de  Vaudreuil,  a  soldier  who  is  to  play  an  important  part  in  our 
story.  Thus  strengthened  both  by  royal  approval  and  by 
troops,  Denonville  hastened  his  preparations  for  a  campaign 
against  the  Iroquois. 

The  Treaty  of  Neutrality  weakened  the  British  cause  in  that 
it  did  not  specify  that  the  Iroquois  were  British  subjects. 
While  the  French  had  good  ground  for  disputing  it,  the  mere 
claim,  if  it  had  the  sanction  of  a  treaty,  would  have  given  Don- 
gan ample  warrant  for  arming  the  Iroquois  and  for  insisting 
on  a  British  establishment  for  trade  on  the  Lakes  or  the 
Niagara.  Without  that  warrant,  he  assumed  rights  which 
the  treaty  did  not  give  him,  and  continued  to  deal  with  the 
Iroquois  so  far  as  they  would  consent,  as  though  they  were  ac- 
knowledged subjects  of  his  king. 

*  Xov.  10,  O.  S. 


CHAPTER  VIII 

DENONVILLE'S  CAMPAIGN 

THE  EXPEDITION  OF  1687 -- THE  CASE  OF  MARION  LA  FONTAINE  — 
THE  BUILDING  AND  ABANDONMENT  OF  FORT  DENONVILLE  — • 
FATHER  LAMBERVILLE'S  NARRATION  —  CONFLICTING  RECORDS. 

DENONVILLE'S  great  captains  of  the  West  —  Durantaye,  Du 
Lhut,  Tonty  and  La  Forest  —  with  their  traders,  coureurs  de 
bois  and  savages,  and  with  the  militant  Jesuit  from  Mackinac 
Mission,  Rev.  Jean  Enjalran,  made  camp  at  the  mouth  of  our 
river,  June  27th.  DC  la  Forest,  who  on  many  occasions  was 
the  messenger,  hastened  by  canoe  along  the  north  shore  of 
Lake  Ontario,  to  inform  Denonville  that  the  western  allies 
were  at  Niagara.  The  day  before  he  set  out  from  Niagara 
a  barque  had  sailed  for  that  point  from  Frontenac,  loaded  with 
provisions  and  ammunition.  Denonville  heard  with  satisfac- 
tion of  the  capture  of  the  English  and  Dutch  traders,  and  has- 
tened the  preparations  for  his  great  assault  upon  the  Iroquois. 
His  army  which  with  great  toil  and  some  loss  had  been  18  days 
in  coining  from  Montreal  to  Frontenac,  mustered  about  2,000 
men,  regulars,  militia  and  Indians.  Leaving  a  reserve  force 
at  this  post,  he  set  out  July  4th  for  the  south  shore  and  on  the 
10th  landed  at  the  appointed  rendezvous,  now  known  as  Iron- 
dequoit  Bay.  As  his  400  canoes  and  bateaux  drew  near  shore, 
they  were  joined  by  the  force  from  Niagara.  From  Quebec 
on  the  east,  from  villages  on  the  Upper  Lakes  a  thousand  miles 
removed  to  the  westward,  the  two  forces  had  chanced  to  reach 
the  appointed  rendezvous  at  the  same  hour.  It  was  not  merely 
the  red  man  who  saw  in  this  fortunate  arrival  omen  of  a  suc- 
cessful undertaking.  The  party  which  had  come  down  the 
Lakes  included  "  about  180  of  the  most  active  men  of  the  colony 
and  about  400  savages."  These  figures,  reported  to  Denon- 
ville by  La  Forest,  must  be  accepted  as  more  trustworthy  than 
the  1,500,  which  was  reported  by  some  of  the  captives. 

As  soon  as  camp  was  made  Denonville  considered  the  cases 

103 


104  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

of  the  prisoners,  in  whose  abject  persons  he  saw  the  humiliation 
of  his  redoubtable  rival,  Dongan.  Men  like  MacGregorie  and 
Rooseboom  were  dangerous  encumbrances  especially  at  the 
opening  of  a  doubtful  campaign  against  the  Iroquois.  All  of 
the  prisoners  therefore  were  sent  on  to  Frontenac,  under 
guard ;  all  except  the  Frenchman,  La  Fontaine,  who  in  a  way 
was  held  accountable  for  the  intrusion  of  the  first  English 
force  into  the  region  of  the  Great  Lakes.  By  Denonville's 
order,  he  was  shot. 

There  is  no  mention  in  Denonville's  journal  of  the  execution 
of  La  Fontaine.  Even  a  great  general,  in  relating  his  own 
deeds,  may  be  reticent  on  such  a  point ;  especially,  as  was  the 
case  in  this  instance,  when  it  was  freely  denounced  as  without 
warrant.  There  was  in  Denonville's  expedition,  a  most  in- 
teresting character,  the  Baron  La  Hontan,  in  whose  adven- 
tures the  curious  student  of  the  history  of  our  region  will  find 
much  entertainment.  Years  after,  in  1703,  in  a  book  published 
at  Amsterdam,  La  Hontan  told  the  story  of  the  military  mur- 
der of  La  Fontaine.  He  was  "  unjustly  shot  to  death,"  says 
La  Hontan.  "  His  case  stood  thus :  Having  traveled  fre- 
quently all  over  this  continent,  he  was  perfectly  well  acquainted 
with  the  country,  and  with  the  savages  of  Canada ;  and  after 
the  doing  of  several  good  services  for  the  King,  desired  leave 
from  the  Governor-General  to  continue  his  travels,  in  order  to 
carry  on  some  little  trade ;  but  his  request  was  never  granted. 
L^pon  that  he  resolved  to  remove  to  New  England,  the  two 
Crowns  being  then  in  peace.  The  planters  of  New  England 
gave  him  a  very  welcome  reception;  for  he  was  an  active  fel- 
low, and  one  that  understood  almost  all  the  languages  of  the 
savages.  L'pon  this  consideration  he  was  employed  to  con- 
duct the  two  English  convoys  .  .  .  and  had  the  misfortune 
to  be  taken  along  with  them.  Now  to  my  mind,  the  usage  he 
met  with  from  us  was  extremely  hard;  for  we  are  in  peace 
with  England  :  and  besides,  that  Crown  lays  claim  to  the  prop- 
erty of  the  Lakes  of  Canada." 

De  Baugy,  who  was  aide  dc  camp  to  Denonville,  explicitly 
says  in  his  journal:  '  "This  same  day  [July  11]  a  French- 

i"  Journal  d'nne   cf\><<\\(\<n\   rani  re   left   Iroquois  en   JGX7,"   etr.     This  in- 


DENONVILLE'S  CAMPAIGN  105 

man  was  made  to  '  pass  by  the  arms.'  He  had  been  captured 
with  some  of  the  English  and  had  been  a  deserter  from  the 
colony  for  several  years.  He  was  executed  in  conformity  with 
an  order  which  M.  the  Marquis  had  received  from  Plis 
Majesty."  2 

In  the  Rooseboom  party  were  two  Dutchmen,  Nanning 
Harmetscn  and  Fredrych  Harmetsen.  In  MacGregorie's  com- 
mand was  Dyrick  van  der  Heyder.  These  three  worthies,  after 
many  adventures,  reached  New  York,  where  on  September  7, 
1687,  they  were  summoned  before  Mayor  Nicholas  Bayard  and 
made  a  sworn  statement  of  what  had  befallen  them.  To  this 
statement  we  are  indebted  for  some  of  the  foregoing  particu- 
lars. The  Dutchmen  averred  that  all  the  members  of  Roose- 
boom's  and  MacGregorie's  parties  were  carried  prisoners  to 
Niagara,  where  the  French  had  now  (at  the  time  of  their  de- 
position) built  a  fort.  From  Niagara  all  of  the  prisoners  save 
one  were  sent  to  "  Cadarackquc "  (Kingston).  There  they 
"  were  very  barbarously  treated  ...  by  the  French  Com- 
mander inforcing  them  to  labour  grievous  hard  in  drawing  the 
Bark  to  bring  materialls  for  to  strengthen  and  building  the 
Fort  and  otherwise."  They  were  afterward  sent  to  Montreal, 
then  to  Quebec,  where  they  "  were  put  out  to  farmers  and 
others  for  to  work  for  their  victuals."  If  Rooseboom  and 
MacGregorie  were  better  treated  than  the  rest  the  narrative 
does  not  reveal  it.  The  three  Dutchmen  and  one  other  made 
their  escape  in  the  night  from  Quebec  and  five  days  later 
reached  Albany,  making  the  journey  by  water.  They  had 
other  experiences  interesting  in  themselves,  but  less  intimately 
associated  with  our  immediate  subject  than  the  fate  of  the  one 
prisoner  above  excepted.  The  Dutchmen  said  they  all  "  were 
sent  from  Onyagra  [Niagara]  to  Catarackque  a  Fort  beyond 
the  Lake,  except  Abell  Marrion  one  of  Captain  Roseboom's 

teresting  and  useful  journal  had  its  first  and  only  publication  in  Paris  in 
ISS:5  —  J9(>  years  after  it  was  written.  No  translation  has  appeared. 

2  According  to  an  undated  Memoir  on  Canada  (No.  471,  MS.  in  Quebec 
Provincial  Archives)  La  Fontaine  underwent  still  another  form  of  death: 
"  Le  council  ile  (juerre  fut  ftnti  qul  condamna  La  Fontaine  Marion  h  avoir 
la  tettte  rassff,  cr  qul  fut  c.n'cuh'r  $ur  la  champ." — Coll.  do  Manuscrits 
.  .  ,  rclatifii  a  In  Xoitrclle  Franre.  I,  .}(!!. 


106  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

Troop  was  by  sentence  or  order  of  Gov'r  De  Nonville  shott  to 
death  because  hee  was  Frenchman  born,  altho'  a  subject  of 
his  Majesty  of  England  and  having  a  passe  from  his  Ex- 
cellcy  [Dongan]  with  the  rest  of  the  Troop."  From  this  the 
inference  would  be  warrantable  that  "  Marrion  "  was  shot  at 
Niagara  —  the  first  of  war's  victims  under  the  English  flag 
on  the  Niagara  border.  It  is  not  safe,  however,  to  rest  con- 
clusions even  on  such  a  contemporary  affidavit.  The  Dutch- 
men were  ignorant  men ;  they  were  prisoners  themselves  when  at 
Niagara  and  no  doubt  swore,  in  their  statement  before  Mayor 
Bayard,  not  only  of  things  they  themselves  had  seen,  but  to 
what  they  had  merely  been  told  at  Cataraqui,  Montreal  and 
Quebec.  The  narratives  of  La  Hontan  and  De  Baugy  leave 
no  room  for  doubt  in  the  matter. 

Rooseboom  and  MacGregorie  were  taken  to  Montreal. 
Later  in  the  same  year  they  were  released,  under  orders  from 
France,  and  lost  no  time  in  returning,  the  former  to  his  family  3 

3  See  "  A  Brief  History  of  the  Ancestors  and  Descendants  of  John  Rose- 
boom  (1739-1805)  and  of  Jesse  Johnson  (1745-1833),"  Cherry  Valley,  N.  Y. 
[1897].  The  first  American  Roseboom  (the  name  being  variously  spelled, 
in  early  records,  Roosenboom,  Rooseboom,  Roseboom)  was  Hendrick 
Yannsen  Rooseboom,  who  appears  to  have  come  from  Holland  about  1655. 
In  1662  he  bought  a  house  and  lot  "in  the  village  of  Beverwyck  on  the 
hill,"  now  a  part  of  Albany.  All  of  the  Albany  Rosebooms  are  descended 
from  him.  His  son,  Captain  Johannes  the  trader,  was  probably  born  in 
Albany  in  1661.  After  the  episode  above  recorded  he  appears  to  have 
.settled  down  at  Albany  to  less  adventurous  ways.  He  married  Gerritje 
Coster  in  1G88.  In  1092  he  was  an  assistant  alderman  and  in  1700  alderman 
of  the  2d  Ward,  holding  office  several  times.  In  1700  he  was  serving  at 
Fort  Albany  as  Lieutenant  in  Captain  Johannes  Bleecker's  Company.  .  .  . 
He  was  "  buried  in  the  church,"  Jan.  25,  1745,  aged  about  84.  It  is 
worthy  of  note  that  a  grand-nephew  of  Captain  Johannes  Roseboom 
(grandson  of  his  younger  brother  Myndert),  was  the  Major  (afterwards 
Colonel)  Myndert  Roseboom  who  was  adjutant,  or  assistant  adjutant  of 
the  division  of  General  Amherst's  army  which  in  1759,  under  Prideaux, 
went  against  Fort  Niagara.  An  original  Order-book  which  he  kept  on  that 
expedition  begins  April  13th,  with  the  troops  at  Albany,  the  orders  being 
given  by  Colonel  Corsa,  under  Colonels  "  Pridicu,"  Johnson  (afterwards 
Sir  William),  and  Bradstreet.  Some  of  the  regiments  are  as  given  by 
Roseboom,  "the  44th,  I,.  Royals,  late  Forbeses,  Inniskillings,  Royal  High- 
landers, Abercrombie's,  Mury's,  Pardoe's  and  four  battalions  of  Royal 
Americans."  Only  a  part  of  these  went  to  Niagara.  Leaving  Albany  May 
Hth,  he  is  with  the  troops  as  they  march  through  the  Mohawk  Valley,  the 
supplies  being  carried  in  whale-boats  and  bateaux  on  the  river,  and  reach- 
ing Oswego  on  June  J7th,  where  the  book  closes. 


DENONVILLE'S  CAMPAIGN  107 

in  Albany,  the  latter  to  New  York.      Sir  Edmund  Andros  sent 
him,  the  next  year,  against  the  Indians  east  of  Pcmaquid.     He 
was  eventually  killed  in  the  city  of  New  York,  in  March,  1691, 
in  an  attempt  to  reduce  the  Leisler  party,  which  held  the  fort 
against    the    Government.     The  last    trace    of    Patrick    Mac- 
Gregorie  is  a  statement  that  he  was  buried  with  public  honors. 
The  men  who  came  to  Canada  in  1685  with  Denonville  (350 
soldiers,  20  officers)  formed  neither  a  regiment  nor  a  battalion, 
but  were  added  to  the  militia  under  the  misleading  title,  "  De- 
tachment of  the  Marine."     They  were  not  a  detachment,  but 
a  corps  complete  of  themselves,  and  formed  no  part  of  any 
regiment  from  France.      They  were  not  of  the  Naval   service 
("  La  Marine  "),  but  were  equipped  and  paid  by  the  "  Bureau 
of  the  Marine  and  the  Colonies  "  which  governed  Canada.     The 
permanent  militia  which  from  1670  to  1760  furnished  the  small 
garrisons    of   Canada   came   also   to   be   called   "  the   Marine." 
Originally  the  service  of  the  Detachment  was  that  of  scouts 
and  skirmishers  (aiaircurs,  tirailleurs),  being  exempt  from  or- 
dinary maneuvers  of  battalion  and  regiment.     It  was  an  ideal 
troop   for   the   American    service,   though   Denonville's   experi- 
ence of  1687  may  have  somewhat  shaken  his  faith  in  it.     The 
officers,  originally   all  French,  were  gradually   replaced  until, 
from  about  1710,  they  were  all  Canadians.      When  occasion  re- 
quired more  men  for  service,  these  officers  assumed  command  of 
the  militia  recruits  who  in  time  of  peace  were  farmers  and  small 
tradesmen.      At  the  close  of  the  French  regime  the  Marine,  sol- 
diers and  officers   alike,  we're   all   Canadian,  and  with  few  ex- 
ceptions  remained  in   Canada   under  English  rule.      This  per- 
haps explains  why  in  the  military  archives  of  France,  little  or 
nothing  is  to  be  found  of  them. 

It  is  foreign  to  the  purpose  of  the  present  narrative  to  enter 
upon  the  detail  of  Denonville's  warfare  against  the  Iroquois. 
The  story  of  this  inglorious  episode  has  been  more  than  once 
recorded,  with  all  possible  fullness,  by  competent  hands;  it 
suffices  here  to  summarize  its  principal  features. 

Leaving  a  force  of  100  men  to  garrison  the  redoubt  which 
had  been  thrown  up  on  a  point  of  land  at  the  entrance  of  the 
bay,  and  sinking  their  boats  under  its  protection.  Denon- 


108  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

ville  on  July  12th  began  his  march  with  some  1,600  troops  and 
Indians  southward  through  the  woods.  On  July  13th  they  en- 
gaged the  enemy,  who  made  an  unsuccessful  attempt  to  ambush 
the  invaders.  According  to  Denonville's  own  account  there 
were  of  the  Indians  800  men  under  arms  in  this  engagement,  of 
whom  he  was  told  40  were  killed,  more  than  50  wounded.  Other 
minor  encounters  followed,  but  the  Senecas  were  illusive  and 
many  soon  fled  beyond  the  reach  of  the  invader.  The  princi- 
pal engagement  took  place  near  the  present  town  of  Victor. 
Denonville's  soldiers  burned  three  other  villages,  one  in  East 
Bloomfield,  another  near  West  Mendon,  Monroe  County,  the 
third  not  clearly  located;  they  destroyed  the  old  corn  and  the 
growing  crop,  to  an  amount  estimated  at  the  incredible  total 
of  1,200,000  bushels.  They  feasted  on  green  corn  and  roast 
pig,  many  hogs  being  found  in  these  Seneca  towns ;  and  suffer- 
ing more  from  their  own  indiscretion  than  from  the  assaults 
of  the  enemy,  they  marched  back  to  Irondequoit  Bay,  reach- 
ing the  redoubt  on  July  24th. 

The  chastisement  which  Denonville  was  to  have  visited  upon 
the  Senecas  had  ridiculously  failed.  He  had  broken  a  wasps' 
nest,  but  had  thereby  only  stirred  up  and  angered  the  wasps. 
The  villages  he  had  burned  would  be  quickly  rebuilt.  The 
heaviest  loss  he  had  inflicted  lay  in  the  destruction  of  the  crops, 
but  not  even  that  meant  serious  discomfiture  to  the  Senecas, 
allied  as  they  were  with  all  the  undisturbed  fraternity  of  the 
Long  House  —  and  was  there  not  Dongan  at  Albany,  where  the 
King's  warehouse  overflowed  with  gifts  for  the  Senecas? 

One  statement  in  Denonville's  journal  calls  for  our  attention. 
At  the  entrance  of  the  small  village  of  Gannounata  (apparently 
some  two  miles  southeast  of  the  present  village  of  East  Avon), 
"  we  found  the  arms  of  England,  which  the  Sicur  Dongan, 
Governor  of  New  York,  had  placed  there  contrary  to  all  right 
and  reason,  in  the  year  1684,  having  ante-dated  the  arms  as 
of  the  year  1683,  although  it  is  beyond  question  that  we  first 
discovered  and  took  possession  of  that  country,  and  for  20 
consecutive  years  have  had  Fathers  Fremin,  Gamier,  etc.,  as 
stationary  missionaries  in  all  their  villages." 

It  was  at  the  Albany  treaty  of  July,  1684,  that  the  Mo- 


DENONVILLE'S  CAMPAIGN  109 

hawks,  Oneidas,  Onondagas  and  Cayugas  had  asked  Dongan 
to  give  them  the  arms  of  the  Duke  of  York,  to  put  up  on  their 
"  castles."  Dongan  was  alert  to  pledge  them  this  "  defense  " 
against  the  French.  Later,  in  August,  the  Seneca  sachems 
reached  Alhany,  shared  in  the  treaty-making,  and  received  like 
assurances  of  protection  and  good  will.  "  I  sent  the  arms  of 
his  Royal  Highness  now  his  Majesty,"  Dongan  wrote  later,  "  to 
be  put  up  in  each  Castle  as  far  as  Oneigra  [Niagara],  which 
was  accordingly  done."  From  his  point  of  view,  shared  neither 
by  the  French  nor  his  Indian  proteges,  all  of  Central  and 
Western  New  York,  as  far  as  the  Niagara,  came  under  British 
domination  by  formal  treaty  of  August  5,  1684.  On  that  day, 
in  a  speech  at  Albany,  the  Senecas  thanked  the  Governor  for 
the  Duke's  arms,  which  he  had  given  them  "  to  be  put  in  our 
castles  as  a  defense  to  them." 

Just  what  sort  of  fabrication  these  "  arms  "  were,  one  hesi- 
tates to  say.  No  historical  museum  is  known  to  contain  one 
of  these  early  relics,  no  history  trustworthily  pictures  them. 
However  made,  painted  or  graven,  they  evidently  pleased  the 
Indians,  who  could  fasten  them  to  a  post  by  the  principal  path 
entering  the  village,  or  over  the  door  of  the  chief  sachem's  lodge. 
Probably  the  Indians  themselves  brought  them  into  Western 
New  York  ;  nor  is  it  likely  that  any  was  put  up  farther  west 
than  the  Seneca  villages  of  the  Genesee  Valley,  notwithstand- 
ing Dongan's  assertion  that  this  emblem  of  authority  was  to 
be  seen  "  as  far  as  Oneigra,"  for  at  that  period  the  Senecas  had 
no  "  castles  "  in  the  vicinity  of  the  Niagara. 

At  Irondequoit,  July  25th,  Denonville's  first  care  was  to  send 
off  a  barque  witli  the  sick  and  wounded,  among  them  Father 
Enjalran,  to  Frontenac  and  thence  down  the  river,  with  news 
of  the  expedition  to  date.  The  redoubt  that  had  been  thrown 
up  was  leveled,  the  palisades  broken  down  and  burned,  that 
nothing  might  be  of  service  to  the  enemy.  The  boats  were 
made  ready  and  on  the  Sfith  the  army  was  on  its  way  to 
Niagara.  Dcnonville  had  trouble  with  his  Indian  allies  who 
feared  to  go  to  Niagara,  not  daring  to  hunt  on  the  borders  of 
the  enemy's  country.  They  were  finally  persuaded,  but  their 
reluctant  and  shifty  attitude  decided  the  Marquis  to  do  quickly 


110  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

what  He  had  resolved  upon  at  Niagara,  and  get  away  as  soon  as 
possible.  When  his  force  was  embarked,  the  regulars  and  the 
Ottawas  led  the  way ;  the  militia  were  so  slow  that  he  left  them 
in  the  rear.  Only  10  leagues  did  the  flotilla  of  canoes  make  the 
first  day.  On  the  27th,  they  were  halted  by  a  gale.  On  the 
28th,  the  boats  with  the  militia  having  come  up,  all  went  for- 
ward again,  but  wrind  and  wave  made  progress  slow  ;  and  finally, 
on  the  night  of  the  29th,  they  went  into  camp  three  leagues 
from  Niagara.  Taking  advantage  of  the  lull  of  the  night 
hours  (the  lake  breeze  being  found  to  come  up  with  the  sun), 
they  broke  camp  at  moonrise;  and  through  the  calm,  hushed 
hours  of  the  summer  night,  lighted  by  the  harvest  moon,  the 
army  paddled  and  rowed  its  myriad  small  craft  along  the 
high  bank  which  formed  the  shore,  and  at  five  in  the  morning 
of  July  31st  reached  the  entrance  of  our  river  and  quickly 
made  camp  on  the  commanding  spot  which  La  Salle  had  occu- 
pied nine  years  before. 

Two  Mohawk  Indians  who  had  served  with  the  French  in 
Denonville's  campaign,  were  that  summer  taken  prisoners  by 
the  English  and  carried  to  Albany,  thence  down  the  river  to 
New  York,  where,  in  Fort  James,  August  31,  1687,  they  were 
examined  before  Stephen  van  Courtland  [Cortland]  regarding 
Denonville's  expedition  and  the  plans  of  the  French.  They 
both  gave  long  accounts  of  the  battle  with  the  Senecas  and  the 
destruction  of  villages  and  crops.  As  interpreted  by  Akus 
Cornellius,  a  Schenectady  Dutchman,  their  stories  are  none  too 
lucid.  One  of  these  Indians,  Kakariall,  had  served  with  the 
French  on  the  expedition,  but  on  reembarking  at  Irondequoit, 
was  in  a  canoe  with  others  who  refused  to  go  to  Niagara. 
"  Two  daycs,"  his  statement  runs,  "  they  stayed  at  Irondekatt, 
then  the  Govr.  gave  orders  to  go  by  water  to  Oniagoragh 
[Niagara],  which  the  Christian  Indians  refused  and  went  back 
to  Cadaraghie,  but  10  or  12  canoes  with  French  went  after 
them,  who  at  last  persuaded  them  to  go  along  to  Oniagoragh, 
except  two  Cannoes  (whereof  this  Deponent  was  one)  and  some 
River  Indians,  who  escaped."  He  adds  particulars  about  the 
fort  building  at  Niagara,  but  as  they  are  hearsay,  may  be 
omitted. 


DENONVILLF'S  CAMPAIGN  111 

His  companion,  Adandidaghko,  was  taken  to  Niagara,  and 
gave  some  details : 

The  Govr.  gave  orders  tliat  the  whole  army  should  goe  directly 
to  Oneageragh,  butt  the  Xtian  Indians  refused  itt  butt  would  returne 
to  Kadaragluc,  and  soe  went  that  way,  the  Govr.  forthwith  followed 
them  with  seven  Canoes  [in]  each  seven  Menn,  and  stopt  them 
saying, 

"  What  is  the  matter  that  you  leave  us  ?  it  is  better  that  wee  goe 
and  returne  together." 

Butt  they  would  not,  till  one  Smiths  John  stood  up  and  spoke  very 
loud,  saying  to  the  rest  of  the  Xtian  Indians : 

"  You  hear  what  the  Governor's  will  is,  that  wee  should  go  up 
with  him;  if  wee  doe  not,  he  will  force  us  to  it;  come,  you  are  lusty 
Men,  let  us  goe  with  him." 

Soe  they  were  perswaded,  and  returned  back  with  the  Govr. 
Severall  Canoes  endeavoured  yctt  to  escape,  butt  were  so  watched 
by  the  French,  that  they  could  not  except  two  or  three  Canoes  that 
stole  away ;  so  were  forced  to  go  with  the  French  along  the  shore 
side  of  the  Lake  till  they  came  to  Oneagoragh,  being  two  days  by 
the  way,  where  the  French  made  a  Fort,  and  put  two  great  gunns 
and  several  Pattareras  in  itt,  with  fouer  hundred  Men  to  bee  there 
in  Garrison.4 

Never  before  has  so  distinguished  a  company  gathered  on  the 
banks  of  the  Niagara.  For  the  moment,  the  military  branch 
of  the  administration  of  New  France  is  centered  here.  With 
Governor  de  Denonvillc  and  the  Marquis  de  Vaudreuil  is  Denon- 
ville's  second  in  command,  the  Knight  Louis  Hector  de  Cal- 
lieres-Bonnevue,  Governor  of  Montreal,  a  veteran  of  20  years' 
military  service  before  lie  came  to  Canada  in  168-1;  he  is  des- 
tined later  to  succeed  Count  Frontenac  as  Governor  of  Canada. 
Here  too  is  the  Chevalier  tie  la  Trove,  another  veteran  who  has 
successfully  led  an  expedition  against  the  English  on  Hudson's 
Bay;  Denonville,  the  year  before,  writing  to  the  Minister, 
Seignclay,  had  spoken  of  de  la  Trove  as  "  the  most  intelligent 
and  most  efficient  of  our  captains;  he  has  that  excellent  tact 
required  for  the  exercise  of  all  qualities  needed  to  command 

*  Board  of  Trade,  X.  V.  papers,   (London  docs.),  Ill,  X.  Y.  Col.  Docs., 
Ill,  43:^-435. 


112  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

others."  Still  another  interesting  figure  in  the  group  is 
La  Forest,  Major  of  Fort  Frontenac,  where  La  Salle  had  left 
him  in  command  in  1679.  When  La  Barre  seized  that  fort,  La 
Forest  returned  to  France,  but  at  the  present  period  of  our 
story,  Fort  Frontenac  has  been  restored  to  him.  He  has 
served  in  the  Illinois  country,  and  later  is  to  command  at  Fort 
St.  Louis  (present  Peoria)  and  Detroit.  His  early  service  is 
peculiarly  identified  with  Lake  Ontario.  No  one  knew  it  bet- 
ter than  he,  and  his  services  were  much  in  demand  when  a  ca- 
pable messenger  was  to  be  sent  across  its  uncertain  waters. 

In  command  of  one  battalion  is  Dorvilliers,  an  experienced 
officer  who  had  gone  at  the  head  of  his  troop  in  1682  to  Fort 
Frontenac.  He  had  reconnoitered  Lake  Ontario  and  the 
Seneca  country  and  made  a  plan,  showing  the  location  of  the 
Indian  villages  before  La  Barre  set  out  on  his  attempt  of 
1684.  In  that  expedition  Captain  Dorvilliers  had  commanded 
the  rear  guard.  The  experiences  of  the  sick  camp  of  La 
Famine  were  his ;  and  he  was  La  Barre's  special  messenger  to 
France,  to  report  on  it  all  to  Louis  and  his  counsellors.  His 
praises  are  sounded  in  many  letters  of  the  time.  Denonville 
styled  him  "  a  man  of  much  prudence  and  intelligence,"  and 
sent  him  to  command  at  Fort  Frontenac,  successor  of  La 
Forest.  Note  has  been  made  of  the  service  he  was  called  to 
perform  in  guarding  the  Niagara  pass  against  the  MacGregorie 
expedition.  However  he  may  have  failed  in  that,  he  had  gained 
an  acquaintance  with  the  region  perhaps  as  intimate  as  was 
possessed  by  any  one  in  Denonville's  command. 

Denonville's  entire  force,  that  landed  this  August  morning 
where  now  Fort  Niagara  stands,  consisted  of  four  battalions 
of  regular  troops,  each  battalion  made  up  of  four  companies; 
three  battalions  of  militia,  recruited  from  the  habitants  —  for 
the  most  part  the  untrained  Canadian  farmer  and  villager ;  and 
four  distinct  bands  of  savages,  known  respectively  as  of  the 
Mountain  [Montreal],  the  Sault,  Sillery  and  Arhetil.  Ac- 
cording to  I)e  Baugv,  there  were  353  Indians,  not  counting  the 
Ottawas  and  others  from  the  West  who  although  they  no  doubt 
tarried  at  Niagara  were  not  held  there  for  any  service. 

The  companies  of  soldiers  and  militia  were  small.      The  larg- 


DENONVILLE'S  CAMPAIGN  113 

est,  a  militia  company  headed  by  Captain  de  la  Fertc,  in  the 
battalion  of  Longueuil,  numbered  58  men ;  the  smallest,  that 
of  De  Repentigny  in  the  battalion  of  La  Valterie,  also  militia, 
had  but  36  men.  The  regular  troops  ranged  from  41  to  46  men 
per  company.  De  Baugy,  who  gives  a  detailed  enumeration  of 
the  entire  force,  says  there  were  843  regulars,  804  militia,  and 
353  Indians,  not  counting  those  from  the  "west ;  and  that  this 
force  arrived  at  Niagara  in  142  canoes  and  198  bateaux;  but 
his  totals  do  not  agree  with  his  details.  The  total  force 
was  about  2,000  men.  There  were  two  extra  heavy  bateaux, 
each  of  which  carried  a  small  cannon  and  15  men  (habi- 
tants). 

To  Denonville,  this  attainment  of  Niagara  was  the  fruition 
of  long-cherished  hopes.  From  the  hour  of  his  arrival  in 
Canada,  he  had  planned,  and  worked,  for  the  armed  occupation 
of  this  frontier.  His  reports  to  De  Seignelay  contain,  over  and 
over,  allusions  to  it.  He  had  not  counted  on  destroying  the 
Seneca  nation  by  his  raid ;  but  he  had  hoped  to  achieve  some- 
thing substantial  by  occupying  the  Niagara.  "  It  is  an  indis- 
pensable necessity,"  he  had  written  in  November,  1686,  "  to 
establish  and  maintain  a  post  of  200  men  at  Niagara,  where 
married  farmers  ought,  in  my  opinion,  be  placed  to  make  clear- 
ances and  to  people  that  place,  in  view  of  becoming,  with  barks, 
masters  of  Lake  Erie.  I  should  greatly  wish  to  have  a  mill  at 
Niagara."  He  believed  Dongan  was  about  to  plant  a  company 
of  his  English,  Scotch  and  Dutch  adventurers  there,  and  he  so 
told  the  Minister.  "  Were  the  English  once  established  there, 
they  must  be  driven  off,  or  we  must  bid  adieu  to  the  entire  trade 
of  the  country."  And  he  begged  for  "  two  good  battalions 
and  the  funds  necessary  to  sustain  the  movement  and  to  occupy 
the  post  at  Niagara."  King  Louis  gave  personal  study  to  the 
region,  as  we  know  from  the  Royal  endorsals  on  the  documents ; 
approved  the  fortifying  of  Niagara,  and  the  necessary  expense 
therefor;  but  Denonville  was  cautioned  by  his  Majesty  "to 
construct  only  slight  fortifications,  suitable  for  warding  off  a 
surprise,  as  he  had  not  to  do  with  any  power  capable  of  carry- 
ing on  a  siege,  so  that  a  simple  wall  with  loop  holes  [crcncaux'] 
and  a  ditch  and  palisades  outside,  are  the  only  works  admissi- 


114;  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

blc  in  that  country."  He  was  further  admonished  to  employ 
the  soldiers  and  "  to  oblige  those  of  the  country  to  work." 

The  preceding  year  he  had  ordered  Dorvilliers  to  Niag- 
ara, with  the  Sieur  de  Villeneuve,  a  draughtsman  sent  out 
from  Paris.  Denonville's  estimate  of  this  man  is  striking. 
"  Though  a  very  good,  very  correct  and  very  faithful  draughts- 
man, he  has  not,  in  other  respects,  a  well-ordered  mind  and  is 
too  narrow  to  be  qualified  to  furnish  any  views  for  the  estab- 
lishment of  a  post,  and  to  be  entrusted  with  the  exclusive  super- 
intendence of  it."  In  a  subsequent  letter  he  calls  him  "  a  fool, 
a  rake  and  a  debauchee  who  must  be  tolerated  because  we  have 
need  of  him."  Denonville  begged  that  Vauban  might  send  him 
a  better  man,  a  request  evidently  not  granted,  for  it  was  Ville- 
neuve who  surveyed  the  site  and  drew  the  plans  for  the  works 
which  Denonville  now  set  about  creating. 

"  I  have  selected  the  angle  on  the  Seneca  side  formed  by  the 
Lake  and  the  river,"  he  wrote,  a  little  later ;  "  it  is  the  most 
beautiful,  the  most  pleasing  and  the  most  advantageous  site  on 
the  whole  of  that  Lake ;  the  map  and  plan  of  which  you  will 
have  if  Sieur  de  Ville  Marie  [sz'c:  Villeneuve]  will  take  the 
trouble,  for  I  tormented  him  considerably  for  it." 

Beautiful  and  advantageous  it  seemed  to  Denonville,  this 
August  morning  as  he  landed  with  his  army.  Although  the 
men  had  toiled  all  night  at  the  oars,  there  was  no  time  for  rest, 
for  the  Governor  was  determined  to  show  to  the  Indians,  espe- 
cially those  from  the  West,  that  here  was  to  be  "  a  secure 
asylum,  in  order  to  encourage  them  to  come  this  winter  to  war 
in  small  bodies."  He  was  also  spurred  by  the  fear  of  Seneca 
attack. 

M.  de  Villeneuve's  plan  was  simplicity  itself.  A  square,  with 
bastions  at  the  angles,  to  be  surrounded  by  a  high  and  stout 
palisade,  was  traced  out  on  the  level  ground  in  the  natural 
angle  of  lake  and  river.  It  was  a  treeless  spot  then  as  now,  de- 
nuded in  days  immemorial  by  countless  Indian  camps  which  at 
certain  seasons  had  been  pitched  there.  The  regular  soldiers 
were  set  at  clearing  the  bushes  and  small  growth ;  the  militia 
were  set  at  work  making  the  pickets.  Denonville  notes  as  the 
chief  inconvenience  of  the  site,  the  distance  that  timber  and 


DENONVILLE'S  CAMPAIGN  115 

firewood  had  to  be  brought.  This  work,  he  says,  was  the  more 
difficult,  "  as  there  was  no  wood  on  the  ground  suitable  for 
making  palisades,  and  from  its  being  necessary  to  haul  them 
up  the  hill."  Two  thousand  J  pickets,  16  feet  long,  sharpened 
at  one  end,  were  cut  and  conveyed  to  the  ground.  This  work 
was  accomplished  on  the  30th,  meanwhile  the  soldiers  had  dug 
the  trench  where  they  were  to  be  planted.  The  next  day  the 
soldiers  set  700  of  them,  using  four  crude  pile-drivers  which 
they  made.  "  We  wished  to  make  two  or  three  chevrons,"  says 
De  Baugy,  "  but  the  necessary  tools  were  lacking,  the  barques 
not  being  able  to  come  in  because  of  contrary  winds."  Finally, 
a  canoe  was  sent  out  to  the  little  wind-bound  vessels,  two  leagues 
away,  for  the  tools. 

The  next  day  the  wind  allowed  the  vessels  to  draw  in,  and 
work  went  faster.  The  French  soldiers  trimmed  and  sharpened 
the  palisades,  the  militia  set  them  in  the  earth.  This  day  three 
bastions  were  begun ;  and  Dcnonville,  deeming  that  some  meas- 
ure of  security  was  gained,  ordered  the  militia  to  embark. 

Dcnonville  was  thoughtful  of  many  things.  He  sent  off 
Du  Lhtit  r>  and  one  companion  to  the  Detroit  River  to  engage 
the  Indians  of  that  region  to  bring  game  to  the  garrison  dur- 
ing the  winter.  Tonty  was  sent  out  to  warn  friendly  tribes 
near  by  to  be  watchful  of  the  Iroquois.  The  Italian  came  back 
at  night  to  report  that  he  had  seen,  lurking  in  the  vicinity, 
Iroquois  in  white  shirts,  an  unheard  of  thing  for  savages  "  who 
go  naked,  and  smear  themselves  with  clay,  in  order  to  be  less 
easily  seen."  Denonville  sent  Tonty  forth  once  more,  this 
time  with  a  company  of  60  men  and  three  or  four  drummers,  to 
scare  off  the  enemy  —  if  there  were  any.  Protected  thus  by 
martial  rub-a-dub  in  the  neighboring  forest,  the  militia  de- 
parted "  right  after  dinner  "  (sur  Vaprcfi  disncc),  while  the 
regular  soldiers  continued  the  work,  which  was  to  be  known  as 
Fort  Denonville.  A  permanent  garrison  of  100  men  was  de- 
tailed for  the  post  under  command  of  De  Troves  as  senior  cap- 

r>  I  cannot  reconcile  DC  T$;uitiy's  figures.  Tlis  words  are:  "On  a  tirti 
la  place,  d'un  quarrt  quc  Von  rent  r-ufniirer  dc  JM  picu.r;  pour  cct  eifct, 
left  habitant*  onf  ctt  nnJrc  d'un  fnirc  ?"'/'),"  etc. 

o  De  Bang}'  has  "  clu  Hault,"  but  Du  I, hut  is  evidently  intended. 


116  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

tain,  with  another  captain  and  two  subalterns.  Leaving  also 
Vaudreuil  on  the  spot  for  a  few  days  to  complete  the  fort  and 
get  in  a  supply  of  firewood,  Denonville  and  his  officers  and 
some  troops  departed. 

Setting  out  from  the  mouth  of  the  Niagara  very  early  in  the 
morning,  the  flotilla  skirted  the  shore  to  the  westward,  as  the 
militia  had  done,  and  as,  a  little  later,  Vaudreuil  and  the  rest 
of  the  army  were  to  do,  the  entire  force  returning  to  Frontenac 
by  way  of  the  north  shore.  They  had  no  mind  to  attempt  the 
Iroquois  side  of  the  lake.  Band  after  band,  the  western  sav- 
ages took  their  way  up  the  Niagara  and  through  Lake  Eric, 
or  overland  by  the  forest  trails  to  the  Detroit ;  and  the  little 
garrison  of  Fort  Denonville,  a  timorous,  depressed,  ineffective 
company,  buried  in  the  hostile  wilderness,  took  up  the  petty 
details  of  routine  on  which  life  itself  depended. 

The  first  day  out,  Denonville  and  his  retinue  made  rapid 
progress  — "  13  good  leagues,"  says  De  Baugy,  with  greater 
accuracy  than  is  sometimes  the  case  in  his  journal.  This 
brought  them  to  the  traverse  across  Burlington  Bay,  which 
they  made  by  moonlight  "  for  fear  the  wind  would  surprise  us." 
Camp  that  night  was  at  Point  Onoron,7  where  the  Marquis 
overtook  the  militia.  A  thunder  storm  delayed  them  on  the 
5th.  They  were  also  delayed  by  the  feebleness  of  the  men. 
"  In  each  canoe  that  had  six  men,  not  more  than  three  were 
able  to  row."  On  the  6th,  they  saw  the  barque  which  had 
taken  the  sick  and  wounded  from  Irondequoit  to  Fort  Fron- 
tenac ;  it  was  now  on  its  way  to  the  Niagara  with  provisions 
for  the  garrison,  in  charge  of  one  Gaillard.  On  the  8th,  they 
were  overtaken  by  the  two  barques  which  they  had  left  at 
Niagara,  now  bearing  Vaudreuil  and  the  last  of  the  army ;  and 
on  the  9th  they  all  made  Frontenac.  Without  accompanying 
the  army  farther  cast,  we  must  return  to  the  cheerless  huts  that 
were  huddled  within  the  palisades  of  Fort  Denonville. 

Scarcely  had  Hie  commissary,  Gaillard,  unloaded  his  stores 
and  sailed  away,  leaving  De  Troyes  and  his  men  to  themselves, 
then  it  was  discovered  that  the  provisions  were  bad.  Some  of 
the  casks  were  soaked  with  sea  water,  the  flour  had  got  wet,  the 

7  Not  identified. 


DENONVILLE'S  CAMPAIGN  117 

biscuits  were  full  of  weevils.  A  feeble  attempt  was  made  to 
raise  vegetables,  but  the  season  was  now  late,  and  what  few 
seed  they  had,  scarce  sprouted.  The  soldiers  proved  indiffer- 
ent fishermen  and  worse  hunters ;  fear  of  the  Iroquois  took  the 
heart  out  of  them.  They  dared  not  send  out  small  parties; 
one  such  party  lost  two  men  by  the  ever-watchful  Scnecas ;  an- 
other party  that  ventured  into  the  forest  was  never  heard  from. 
Summer  waned,  autumn  faded  into  the  chill  and  dreary  win- 
ter; and  as  the  days  dragged  on,  with  no  visits  from  their 
western  allies,  bringing  game,  the  scurvy  looked  in  upon  them, 
starvation  came  and  took  command.  If  any  attempt  was 
made  to  get  relief  from  Frontenac  or  Montreal,  the  inadequate 
old  records  do  not  tell  of  it.  Father  Jean  de  Lamberville,  to 
whom  this  flock  looked  for  counsel  and  encouragement,  early 
fell  desperately  sick.  The  veteran  De  Troycs  sickened  and 
died.  Death  was  a  familiar  caller  at  all  the  cabins  within  the 
palisades.  In  six  weeks  the  garrison  lost  60  men.  In  March, 
20  more  died ;  and  the  handful  of  wasted  men  remaining  would 
soon  have  joined  their  fellows,  but  for  the  arrival  of  a  Miami 
war  party,  led  by  Michitonka.  Twelve  out  of  the  100  were 
all  that  were  left.  Two  or  three  of  the  strongest,  the  priest 
among  them,  set  out  with  some  of  the  Miamis  and  made  their 
way  by  the  margin  of  the  lake  to  Frontenac  ;  and  the  lake  being 
open,  early  in  April,  a  relief  boat  was  sent  to  the  unhappy  post. 
With  the  relief  came  Captain  Desbergeres  and  the  Jesuit  priest 
Milet. 

It  was  near  the  end  of  Lent,  and  one  of  Father  Milet's  first 
acts  was  to  mark  out  the  site  for  the  erection  of  a  great  cross. 
Hewn  of  oak,  it  was  18  feet  tall,  and  on  the  crosspiece  Father 
Milet  himself  traced  the  symbols  for  the  legend: 

Rcgnat,    Vincit,    Impcrat    Christus. 

These  words,  abbreviated,  we're  cut  in  the  oak,  and  midway 
of  the  line,  the  symbol  of  the  Sacred  Heart.  On  Good  Friday 
the  cross  was  set  up  and  blessed,  in  the  middle  of  the  square, 
among  the  graves  where  lav  De  Troves  and  80  of  his  men. 

Tin'  renewed  garrison  included  some  capable  men  • —  the  sieurs 
De  la  Mothe,  Lallabelle,  Demuratre  de  Clcrin,  dc  Gemerais, 


118  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

Chevalier  dc  Tregay,  all  lieutenants  or  other  officers,  and  others 
of  repute ;  and  the  summer  passed  without  incident,  save  that 
Iroquois  war  parties  constantly  hung  about,  keeping  the  garri- 
son under  tension.  Meanwhile  its  fate  was  considered  in  Paris. 

As  it  was  a  question  of  giving  up  either  Frontcnac  or 
Niagara,  Denonville  decided  to  maintain  the  former,  and  to 
abandon  Niagara.  With  the  slight  means  at  his  command, 
the  revictualing  of  Niagara  was  expensive.  His  hope,  too,  that 
western  tribes  would  make  it  a  base  of  incursions  into  the 
Iroquois  country  of  central  New  York,  had  not  been  realized. 
Louis  approved ;  and  so,  in  September  the  bark  La  Generate 
sailed  to  the  mouth  of  the  Niagara,  but  not  with  reinforce- 
ments or  provisions  —  she  had  come  to  take  away  Desbergeres 
and  his  homesick  garrison.  The  guns  were  put  on  board,  as 
were  the  other  meager  effects  of  value.  The  palisades  on  the 
south  and  east  sides  of  the  fort  were  broken  down.  Elsewhere 
the  wind  had  already  done  this  work,  so  that,  had  an  Iroquois 
war  party  appeared,  they  might  readily  have  entered.  But 
the  cabins  and  other  buildings  were  left  standing,  with  doors 
ajar,  to  welcome  who  might  come,  Iroquois  or  wolf.  Father 
Milet  took  from  above  his  door  a  little  sun-dial.  "  The  shadow 
of  the  great  cross  falls  divers  ways,"  he  said ;  and  leaving  all 
stripped  and  forlorn,  with  the  great  cross  standing  in  the  little 
square,  on  the  morning  of  September  15th,  the  melancholy  gar- 
rison sailed  away.  Before  embarking  the  men  were  gathered 
about  the  cross  by  the  priest,  who  said  a  final  Mass.  The 
last  recorded  act  at  Fort  Denonville  was  one  of  devotion. 

The  foregoing  account  is  based  on  Denonville's  own  narra- 
tive 8  of  the  establishment  of  Fort  Denonville ;  on  the  statement 
of  the  "  Condition  in  which  the  Fort  of  Niagara  was  left  in 
1688  "  '  witnessed  by  the  Rev.  Jean  Milct,  Desbergeres  and 
others ;  and  related  papers.  There  exists  however  another 
document  10  which  gives  many  additional  details  and  merits  at- 
tention. 

s  "Memoir  of  the  voyage  and  expedition  .  .  .  against  the  Seneeas,"  1687. 
o  Paris  Does.,  IV,  X.  Y.  Col.  Docs.,  TX;  ^86-388. 

W  M6moire  pour  1090"  in  Collection  dc  Manuscrits  .  .  .  relniifs  ri  la 
Nouvelle  France,"  vol.  1,  published  by  the  Legislature  of  Quebce,  1883. 


DENONVILLE'S  CAMPAIGN  119 

According  to  this  narrative,  a  messenger  reached  Montreal 
in  February  with  word  that  the  garrison  at  Fort  Frontenac 
were  all  sick  with  the  scurvy.  De  Calliercs  fitted  out  a  com- 
pany of  militia  with  supplies,  which  set  out  from  Montreal 
early  in  March.  They  were  detained  at  La  Chine  for  some 
weeks,  then  proceeding  by  canoe,  a  force  of  80  in  all  —  30  sol- 
diers, six  officers,  six  navigators,  the  rest  voyageurs  commanded 
by  M.  dc  St.  Cirq.  The  commander  of  the  whole  relief 
expedition  was  the  Chevalier  D'Eau.  The  memoir  contin- 
ues : 

We  arrived  at  Fort  Frontenac  about  the  20th  of  April,  where  we 
found  the  garrison  reduced  to  12  or  15  persons,  which  made  us  con- 
clude that  Niagara  would  be  no  better  off.  A  vessel  was  promptly 
made  ready;  meanwhile  St.  Cirq  set  out  with  his  Canadians  and 
some  of  the  sick.  When  at  the  isle  of  Tonniata  u  several  canoes  set 
off  to  hunt,  two  of  them  fell  into  an  Iroquois  ambuscade  which  killed 
one  party  and  carried  off  the  other.  It  was  impossible  to  go  to  their 
aid;  the  rest  of  the  company  hastened  on  to  Montreal. 

Finally  the  barque  was  equipped  with  15  soldiers  and  four  officers, 
a  Jesuit,  the  captain  and  10  sailors.  As  the  captain  missed  his  route 
in  leaving  the  fort,  because  he  had  drunk  too  much  wine,  we  did  not 
reacli  the  Niagara  until  the  12th  of  May,  at  midnight.  One  of  their 
officers  came  alongside  and  told  us  that  all  the  garrison  was  well, 
but  when  we  were  in  the  fort  we  saw  quite  the  contrary,  since  there 
were  more  than  SO  coats  hung  along  the  palisades.  Indeed  there 
were  but  three  officers  and  four  soldiers  who  were  well,  and  five 
or  six  dying  men  whom  they  put  on  board  the  barque.  One  of  them 
died  while  being  carried,  the  others  were  soon  cured. 

There  were  80  Miamis  whom  we  found  camped  there  who  had 
come  about  the  end  of  April.  The  garrison  believed  they  would  all 
have  died,  had  not  the  savages  often  gone  hunting,  so  that  there  was 
no  lack  of  deer  and  wild  turkey. 

They  told  us  that  Monsieur  dc  Troves,  commandant,  had  died 
May  8th,  and  that  it  was  to  him  they  ascribed  the  principal  cause  of 
the  sickness;  because  the  previous  autumn  he  had  cut  down  the  ra- 
tions, and  refused  to  kill  a  cow  ho  had;  except  for  this  they  would 

Although  the  memoir  is  headed  "IfiPO"  there  can  he  no  question  that  the 
incidents  related  are  of  KiSS. 

11  Prohably  the  Grenadier  island  of  to-day.  "  Five  or  six  leagues  from 
La  Galettc  is  an  island  called  Tonihata." — Charlevoix,  III,  104. 


120  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

have  had  the  hay  which  was  to  have  been  put  in  the  soldiers'  mat- 
tresses, but  this  obliged  them  to  sleep  on  the  ground. 

This  severity  made  the  garrison  resolve  to  mutiny,  to  cut  the 
throats  of  the  commandant  and  several  other  officers  with  whom  they 
were  not  pleased,  and  to  choose  a  commander  who  should  lead  them 
to  the  English  at  New  York.  Of  all  the  garrison,  only  three  refused 
to  join  in  the  plot.  The  evening  before  this  plan  was  to  be  carried 
out,  a  large  Iroquois  war  party  12  appeared  before  the  fort,  who 
kept  up  a  skirmish  and  held  the  garrison  in  suspense  for  several 
days.  This  made  them  delay  their  plan,  and  several  falling  sick, 
the  scheme  was  abandoned. 

The  80  Miamis  who  were  camped  about  the  fort  did  not  wish  to 
return  to  their  own  country  without  making  an  attempt  against  the 
Iroquois.  About  65  of  them  set  out  to  surprise  some  Seneca  vil- 
lages. When  they  were  near  they  fell  into  an  ambuscade,  there  was 
an  exchange  of  shots  and  the  Miamis  fled.  There  was  but  one  Iro- 
quois killed,  whose  scalp  they  took.  The  first  who  returned  to  the 
fort  told  us  that  all  the  Miamis  were  defeated.  Their  women,  who 
had  remained  at  the  fort,  began  to  wail  and  kept  it  up  for  three 
days,  when  the  fugitives  began  to  come  in  one  after  another,  so  that 
only  one  man  was  missing. 

The  next  day  they  made  ready  to  depart.  We  set  them  across 
the  river  in  bateaux,  and  from  there  they  went  on  through  the 
woods  to  the  Detroit,  crossing  from  there  to  their  own  country. 

Four  days  later  the  missing  man  appeared.  He  had  been  eight 
days  without  food,  and  had  an  arrow  through  his  thigh.  Our  sur- 
geon pulled  it  out,  drawing  it  through  the  thigh,  the  savage  not 
flinching,  and  in  a  few  days  he  was  healed. 

About  the  middle  of  September  two  barques  arrived  with  orders 
to  the  commandant  to  burn  the  fort,  to  bring  back  all  the  effects  to 
Frontenac  and  to  send  the  garrison  to  Montreal;  all  of  which  was 
accomplished  in  four  days.  So  we  returned  to  Frontenac,  and  took 
a  bateau  for  Montreal,  carrying  the  Miami  with  us. 

There  is  nothing  in  this  account  which  cannot  be  reconciled 
with  Denonville's  official  report,  except  the  burning  of  the  fort. 
It  is  substantially  the  account  of  Gedeon  de  Catalogne,  who  in 
1686  had  served  at  Hudson's  Bay  under  the  Chevalier  de 
Troycs.  He  was  at  Frontenac  or  Montreal  in  the  spring  of 

12  Belmont  savs  40  canoes. 


DENONVILLE'S  CAMPAIGN  121 

1688  when  it  was  resolved  to  send  a  relief  force  to  Niagara. 
He  took  service  in  it. 

According  to  long  accepted  records,  the  Jesuit  Jean  de  Lam- 
berville  was  with  the  afflicted  garrison  at  Fort  Denonville,  was 
attacked  by  the  scurvy  and  removed  to  Fort  Frontenac,  being 
succeeded  at  Niagara  in  the  spring  of  1688  by  Father  Milet. 
Let  us  examine  the  testimony  bearing  on  the  priest  Lamber- 
ville's  part  in  the  campaign. 

The  memoirs  of  neither  Denonville  nor  De  Baugy  refer  to 
Jean  de  Lamberville  as  having  been  at  Niagara.  The  latter 
makes  no  mention  of  him  at  all.  The  former  alludes  to  his 
Onondaga  mission,  and  to  his  return  to  Fort  Frontenac,  June 
30th,  from  Onondaga,  with  Indian  hostages.  Denonville  set 
out  on  his  expedition  against  the  Senecas,  July  4th.  He  does 
not  say  he  was  accompanied  by  any  chaplain,  although  Fa- 
ther Enjalran  joined  him  at  Irondequoit,  having  come  from 
the  West  with  Tonty.  Receiving  a  serious  wound,  he  was 
sent  down  to  Fort  Frontenac,  and  did  not  return  to  Niagara. 

Although  it  was  the  custom  to  assign  a  chaplain  to  a  garri- 
son whenever  possible,  and  although  Father  de  Lamberville 
is  generally  stated  to  have  ministered  at  Niagara  until  he  was 
incapacitated  by  disease,  satisfactory  proofs  in  the  matter  have 
not  been  found.  On  the  other  hand,  a  letter  by  De  Lamber- 
ville, lately  come  to  light,  appears  to  show  that  he  first  went 
to  Niagara  on  the  vessel  that  carried  supplies,  in  the  autumn 
of  1687,  and  that  he  returned  with  it  to  Fort  Frontenac. 

It  nowhere  appears  that  he  was  with  Denonville  in  the 
Seneca  country.  The  Rev.  Jacques  Bruyas  either  accompanied 
Denonville,  or  joined  him  at  Irondequoit;  but  returned  from 
Irondequoit  to  Frontenac,  not  coming  to  Niagara. 

At  Totiakton,  the  largest  of  the  Seneca  villages,  July  19th, 
the  Rev.  Francois  de  Gueslis  Vaillant,  with  Denonville  and  his 
officers,  signed  the  formal  Minute  of  taking  possession  of  the 
Seneca  country. 

Both  Vaillant  and  Bruyas  were  at  times  intimately  associated 
with  the  elder  Joncaire.  Father  Vaillant's  mission  work,  prior 
to  Denonville's  raid,  and  for  sonic1  years  afterward,  was  carried 
on  among  the  Senecas;  no  other  Jesuit  of  the  New  York  mis- 


122  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

sions  is  known  to  have  labored  nearer  the  Niagara ;  but  no 
mention  is  found  of  the  presence  on  this  river  of  either  of  these 
priests. 

So  far  as  appears,  Denonville  and  his  army  came  to  the 
Niagara  unaccompanied  by  any  chaplain;  but  De  Lamber- 
ville  soon  came,  with  the  vessel  bringing  supplies,  from  Fron- 
tenac.  His  own  account  of  the  voyage  13  is  one  of  the  most 
graphic  narratives  we  have  of  early  adventure  on  Lake  On- 
tario, and  is  best  given,  in  main  part,  in  the  priest's  own 
words : 

The  day  before  our  departure  from  Cataroqui,  the  Iroquois,  who 
were  hemming  us  in,  had  fired  on  the  crew  when  yet  at  the  wharf, 
and  wounded  a  sergeant,  who  died  after  receiving  the  last  Sacra- 
ments. Hardly  had  we  doubled  the  point  than  an  Iroquois  fired  at 
us.  It  was  the  signal  for  the  Indians  to  leave  their  camp,  where 
they  had  been  for  several  days  enjoying  the  good  cheer  they  had 
taken  from  the  French  near  the  Rapids. 

A  great  number  had  been  invited  to  witness  the  attack  on  our 
barque.  If  they  took  it  they  would  starve  out  our  friends  at  Ni- 
agara. Several  canoes  pursued  us  and  made  for  a  little  island,  in- 
tending to  intercept  us,  for  on  account  of  the  shallows  we  had  to 
pass  very  close  to  it.  Other  Indians  ran  along  the  shore  to  capture 
us  in  case  we  landed.  Suddenly  the  wind  dropped,  and  we  were 
becalmed.  The  savages  were  all  around,  but  out  of  gunshot.  We 
prayed,  and  I  exhorted  the  men  to  fight  to  the  death  rather  than  be 
taken  and  tortured.  We  had  four  cannon  called  pierriers  for  dis- 
charging stones,  twelve  muskets,  with  two  arquebuses  and  six  gre- 
nades. We  determined  not  to  fire  all  at  once,  but  one  after  the 
other;  while  two  of  us  were  to  keep  loading.  Our  deck  had  no 
guards,  so  we  had  to  lie  down  while  fighting.  A  shower  of  bullets 
swept  over  us.  We  replied  by  a  volley  from  both  sides  of  the 
barque.  Some  of  the  Indians  fell  in  their  canoes  and  were  carried 
off,  but  their  place  was  taken  by  others. 

Four  canoes  bolder  than  the  rest  came  close  up  to  us,  but  we 
stopped  them  with  our  arquebuses  and  the  pierrier,  which  had  thirty 
stones  in  it.  That  discharge  riddled  the  canoes  and  made  them 

13  The  original  M.S.  is  in  Ihe  British  Museum.  It  does  not  appear  in  the 
"  Relations  "  as  edited  by  Thwaites,  but  is  quoted  in  a  more  recent  work, 
"  Pioneer  Priests  of  North  America,"  by  Rev.  T.  .1.  Campbell,  S.J.,  who 
speaks  of  the  manuscript  as  "  recently  discovered." 


DEN7OXVILLE'S  CAMPAIGN  123 

draw  off  to  the  island  to  attend  to  the  wounded  and  repair  the  dam- 
age to  their  boats.  They  came  again  to  the  charge,  not  doubting 
that  half  of  our  number  had  fallen  under  their  furious  fusillade. 
But  no  one  had  yet  been  hit.  Just  then  they  remarked  that  there 
was  no  fire  from  the  stern  and  they  made  for  it,  but  a  cry,  "  they 
are  boarding  us !  "  from  one  of  the  soldiers  caused  a  rush  in  that 
direction  with  swords  and  grenades,  but  at  that  moment  a  slight 
wind  sprung  up  and  we  began  to  move. 

I  was  engaged  in  loading  the  muskets  and  sticking  out  two 
arquebuses  from  the  stern  to  scare  the  invaders.  The  puff  of  wind 
gave  us  courage,  and  we  drifted  slowly  past  the  island. 

Just  then  a  chief  started  out  with  five  or  six  canoes  to  head  us  off. 
He  stood  up  brandishing  his  weapons  and  then  aimed  at  the  pilot 
and  a  sailor  who  were  defending  the  bow,  but  they  dodged  in  time 
and  escaped  the  shot,  and  immediately  aimed  at  him  and  tumbled 
him  over  with  a  shot  in  the  neck  and  another  in  the  body,  as  I  after- 
wards learned.  But  his  companions  would  not  withdraw,  when  one 
of  our  soldiers,  a  Breton,  who  had  been  in  the  German  wars,  rushed 
to  the  pierrier  and  at  the  risk  of  his  life,  for  he  had  to  stand  up, 
applied  the  match,  and  in  a  flash  a  shower  of  stone  balls  sunk  the 
canoe  to  the  bottom.  The  Breton  was  not  hurt,  but  two  Indian 
bullets  passed  through  his  hat. 

It  was  the  last  effort  of  the  savages.  The  wind  freshened,  and 
the  distance  widened  between  us,  and  they,  fearing  to  go  out  in  the 
open,  withdrew.  The  fight  had  lasted  three-quarters  of  an  hour. 
Three  hundred  bullet  holes  were  in  our  sails;  many  of  the  ropes 
were  cut,  but  thanks  be  to  God,  none  of  our  halliards  was  injured. 
We  were  a  league  away  and  were  again  becalmed,  but  the  Indians 
did  not  follow  us. 

Next  morning  we  started  with  a  west  wind  and  a  cloudy  sky.  Off 
in  the  distance  we  saw  the  fires  of  the  Iroquois.  We  kept  out  in  the 
lake,  for  a  storm  was  approaching.  The  lake  was  soon  like  the 
ocean  in  its  fury.  Great  waves  washed  over  us,  but  we  did  not 
dare  to  put  in,  for  fear  of  the  enemy.  Often  we  thought  we  were 
going  to  the  bottom.  Finally,  after  fourteen  days  of  hard  weather, 
we  saw  in  the  distance  the  flag  of  Fort  Niagara.  Our  joy  may  be 
imagined.  We  could  sec  the  Iroquois  skulking  around  as  we  landed. 

We  had  scarcely  unloaded  when  the  Commandant  thought  it  would 
be  advisable  to  return,  because  the  wind  was  favorable  and  our 
friends  at  Cataroqui  would  be  anxious.  On  the  18th  of  October  we 
reached  Cataroqui.  The  Indians  had  been  hanging  about  the  fort 


124  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

all  the  time,  behind  200  cords  of  fire  wood  which  we  had  heaped  up. 
They  were  waiting  for  our  return,  but  lost  patience  and  decamped 
the  day  before  we  arrived,  after  setting  fire  to  all  our  wood  and 
killing  a  soldier,  whose  death  revealed  their  ambuscade. 

It  is  clear,  by  the  priest's  own  account,  that  he  returned  to 
Frontenac  in  October.  Who  then  was  chaplain  at  Fort 
Niagara  during  that  terrible  winter  of  scurvy  and  starvation? 
Was  there  a  later  passage  of  a  bark  from  Frontenac  to  Niagara, 
bringing  the  priest,  De  Lamberville,  a  second  time,  to  stay 
through  the  winter?  Where  the  records  are  not  obscure,  they 
are  silent;  and  conjecture  is  not  history. 

Years  afterward,  when  De  Lamberville  was  in  Paris,  he  wrote 
a  long  letter  14  to  a  friend  in  China,  in  which  he  recalled  some 
of  his  experiences  in  the  Lake  Ontario  region.  The  battle  with 
the  Indians  on  the  lake,  above  related,  is  again  told  in  differ- 
ent language,  and  the  statement  made  that  the  little  bark  was 
attacked  by  800  Iroquois,  in  their  canoes ;  "  they  were  about 
to  overwhelm  us  with  their  numbers,  when  Heaven  was  fa- 
vorable to  our  prayers  and  sent  us  a  wind  which  swept  us  away 
from  their  fury  when  they  thought  to  grasp  their  prey,  and  to 
avenge  upon  us  the  death  of  their  comrades." 

In  this  letter  he  continues :  "  I  was  afterward  obliged, 
through  obedience,  to  remain  in  this  ill-fated  rendezvous  with 
140  soldiers,  whose  chaplain  I  was."  This  appears  to  refer 
not  to  Niagara,  where  the  garrison  had  never  been  more  than 
100  men,  but  to  Frontenac.  De  Lamberville  in  this  letter 
mentions  neither  place  by  name,  but  proceeds  with  a  long  ac- 
count of  how  they  (in  the  unnamed  fort)  were  beset  by  the 
Iroquois,  so  they  "  could  get  neither  wood,  water,  nor  fresh 
food."  He  tells  how  the  scurvy  broke  out  in  the  garrison  and 
"  carried  off  about  a  hundred  men."  He  says  that  he  caught 
the  disease  and  was  near  dying,  when  "  an  officer  of  our  troops 
unexpectedly  came  over  the  snow,  with  30  men,  15  of  whom 
were  Iroquois,  friends  and  Christians."  lie  docs  not  state 
where  they  came  from,  but  says  "  they  had  marched  80  leagues 

I*  Dated  "  Paris,  this  2',k\  of  January,  1U95."     The  name  of  the  missionary 
to  whom  he  wrote  is  not  known. 


DENONVILLE'S  CAMPAIGN  125 

over  the  snow,  with  their  food,  clothing  and  arms."  Allow- 
ing 2/->  miles  to  the  league,  this  about  as  closely  approximates 
the  distance  from  Montreal  to  Frontenac,  as  it  does  that  from 
Frontenac  to  Niagara,  if  the  latter  journey  were  shortened 
by  crossing  the  western  end  of  the  lake  on  the  ice.  In  other 
words,  it  does  not  help  to  clear  up  the  mystery.  De  Lamber- 
ville  continues  with  a  graphic  account  of  his  removal  from  the 
afflicted  fort,  which  runs  in  part  as  follows : 

They  found  us  in  a  very  had  condition;  and  for  fear  of  remaining 
themselves  in  this  fort, —  where  the  unwholesome  air  made  them 
feel,  from  the  first,  the  beginning  of  this  singular  malady, —  they 
resolved  to  depart  immediately,  and  to  make  all  possible  haste,  that 
they  might  not  be  surrounded  or  encountered  by  the  enemy.  This 
officer,  who  was  my  friend,  having  learned  from  the  surgeon  that  I 
had  only  one  or  2  Days  to  live  if  they  did  not  get  me  away  from 
this  post,  undertook  to  remove  me  who  was  half  dead.  He  refused 
to  aeeord  the  same  favor  to  some  others,  even  officers, —  who  after- 
ward died,  but  who  were  less  ready  for  death  than  I  was, —  alleg- 
ing the  length  of  the  journey,  and  the  inclemency  of  the  season;  the 
necessity  of  carrying  their  arms,  provisions,  and  blankets;  and  the 
necessity  for  making  great  haste  on  account  of  the  enemy,  who  were 
following  in  their  track.  He  undertook  to  do  for  me  what  he  would 
not  do  for  another.  Having  entreated  him  to  let  me  die.  and  to 
consent  to  substitute  in  my  place  a  sick  officer,  he  absolutely  refused. 

Accordingly,  as  I  had  become  useless  from  that  time,  on  account 
of  the  condition  in  which  I  was,  the  rest  of  the  garrison  received 
general  absolution,  while  they  supported  me  by  the  arms;  then  hav- 
ing bound  me  upon  a  sledge.,  to  which  2  great  dogs  were  harnessed, 
they  set  out,  passing  over  a  fro/en  lake.  The  ice  broke,  and,  care- 
fully bundled  upon  this  sledge,  I  was  in  this  condition  plunged  into 
the  water.  The  dogs  which  were  attached  to  it  kept  me  above  the 
ice,  to  which  they  held  fast  with  their  claws.  To  rescue  me  from 
this  peril  needed  carefulness,  because  the  ice  which  surrounded  me 
was  broken  on  all  sides.  Finally,  when  they  were  drawing  me  out 
of  the  water,  the  rope  broke,  and  I  ran  the  risk  of  being  drowned. 
Being  withdrawn  from  the  water  and  again  placed  upon  the  ice.  the 
dogs  were  too  much  fatigued;  and  some  French  Canadians  and  sol- 
diers who  were  with  us  took  the  trouble  to  drag  me,  now  over  the 
iee.  now  over  the  snow,  bv  turns. —  without  discontinuing  their 
march,  because  the  Iroquois  were  following  in  their  track;  and  be- 


126  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

cause  they  wished  to  keep  the  advantage  that  they  had  over  them, 
for  fear  that  they  might  attack  us. 

The  narrator  says  that  the  journey  lasted  seven  and  a  half 
days,  when  they  reached  Montreal.  "  It  was  in  February, 
1688,  that  this  occurred."  He  was  taken  to  the  Seminary  of 
St.  Sulpice,  but  did  not  recover  from  the  effects  of  the  ordeal 
for  two  and  a  half  years. 

A  winter  journey  on  foot  from  present  Kingston  to  Mon- 
treal in  seven  days  and  a  half  means  35  miles  a  day ;  a  thing 
within  reason;  but  a  journey  from  Niagara  to  Montreal  in 
that  time  and  under  the  desperate  conditions  that  existed,  is 
inconceivable.  Accepting  Father  De  Lamberville's  letters  as 
wholly  trustworthy,  the  conclusion  is  inevitable  that  his  af- 
fliction did  not  occur  at  Fort  Denonville,  the  Niagara  of  to- 
day. 

This  conclusion  overthrows  a  story  which  appears  to  have 
been  accepted  from  the  days  of  La  Potherie  and  Charlevoix. 
Our  examination  of  the  matter,  an  effort  to  discover  the  truth, 
has  at  least  shown  in  some  measure  the  existing  conditions  at 
this  most  critical  time  in  the  fortunes  of  New  France.  Denon- 
ville's  ineffective  raid  into  Central  New  York  gave  to  French 
enterprise  on  the  Lower  Lakes  a  serious  set-back.  It  so  roused 
the  ire  of  the  Iroquois  that  Fort  Denonville  was  abandoned, 
and  Fort  Frontenac  greatly  reduced.  Nearly  a  third  of  a 
century  is  to  elapse  before  the  French  again  venture  to  estab- 
lish themselves  on  the  Niagara. 

Still  another  version  there  is  of  the  fate  of  Fort  Denonville, 
which  may  have  place  here,  if  only  to  illustrate  what  a  wide 
variety  of  statements  may  be  given  currency  and  accepted  as 
trustworthy  facts.  In  a  memorial  prepared  by  the  Commis- 
sioners of  Trade  and  Plantations  in  1697,  regarding  the  rights 
of  the  British  Crown  over  the  New  York  Indians,  occurs  the 
following  statement: 

A  new  war  broke  out  and  those  Indians  made  divers  inroads  into 
Canada,  blocked  Tip  the  Fort  of  Onyagra  and  starved  the  Frencli 
garrison  in  it;  so  that  a  priest  was  the  only  man  that  survived,  and 


DENONVILLE'S  CAMPAIGN  127 

cutting  all  communication  between  the  French  and  their  fort  at 
Cadaraqui,  forced  the  garrison  (about  the  beginning  of  this  present 
war  with  France)  to  quit  that  place;  in  doing  which  the  French 
blew  up  one  of  the  bastions,  and  left  the  rest  entire,  which  with  a 
quantity  of  ammunition  came  into  the  Indians'  possession.10 

One  aspect  of  Denonville's  ill-fated  venture  on  the  Niagara 
demands  a  word.  It  is  unique  in  the  early  annals  of  the  region 
in  not  having  trade  as  its  chief  occasion  and  impetus.  It  was 
a  part  of  Denonville's  ineffective  attempt  to  discipline  the  Iro- 
quois  by  fighting  them.  Could  the  garrison  on  the  Niagara 
have  been  spared  long  enough  to  feel  secure,  trade  operations 
would  naturally  have  sprung  up  ;  but  nothing  of  the  sort  appears 
in  the  short  and  tragic  history  of  the  post.  Its  real  purpose 
shows  forth  in  a  Government  communication,  written  a  few 
months  before  its  abandonment:  "His  Majesty  highly  ap- 
proves their  [Denonville  and  Champigny]  having  caused  one 
[fort]  to  be  built  at  Niagara,  and  is  persuaded  that  it  will  af- 
ford friendly  Indians,  and  particularly  the  Illinois,  an  oppor- 
tunity to  harass  the  Iroquois  this  winter  by  small  parties  who 
will  find  a  sure  retreat  in  that,  post."  1(!  But  when  the  resentful 
Iroquois  sent  an  angry  delegation  to  Montreal,  to  demand  the 
demolition  of  the  fort,  Denonville,  knowing  he  could  not  maintain 
it,  acceded  to  their  demands. 

The  officer  who  had  been  placed  in  command  of  the  rescued 
garrison  merits  further  notice.  Raymond  Blaise  Desbergeres 
de  Rigauville,  born  between  1655  and  1660,  was  of  the 
parish  of  St.  Pierre,  city  of  Orleans.  He  had  married,  about 
1680,  Anne  Richard  de  Goigni,  by  whom  he  had  a  son,  Nico- 
las, born  about  1682.  The  father  ranked  as  lieutenant.  In 
1685  he  was  made  captain  and  came  to  Canada  in  the  troops  of 
Denonville.  On  the  death  of  De  Troves,  he  came  with  the  re- 
lief party  to  Fort  Denonville  and  commanded  on  the  Niagara 
until  the  abandonment  of  the  post.  In  July,  1689,  he  fought 
a  duel  with  Captain  Francois  Lefebvre,  Sieur  Duplessis,  in 
which  he  received  a  sword  cut :  it  is  recorded  that  Duplessis 

"  N*.  Y.  Col.  Docs.,  V,  7<i. 

1C  The  Minister   (Seiirnrlny)   to  Dcnonvillr  ami  Champitrny.  Meh.  S.  IfiSS. 


128  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

afterwards  paid  him  600  francs.  In  1691,  with  his  family,  he 
is  at  Chambly,  where  he  was  in  command,  1692-95.  His  wife 
had  evidently  died,  for  in  1694  he  married  Jeanne-Cecile 
Closse,  widow  of  the  fort  major  Jacques  Bizard.  She  died 
in  1700.  Desbergeres  rebuilt  the  fortifications  of  Chambly 
and  later  complained  that  the  Government  had  not  reimbursed 
him  for  large  personal  outlay.  In  the  summer  of  1696  we  find 
him  with  a  military  expedition  on  Lake  Ontario  and  in  Cen- 
tral New  York,  making  war  on  the  Onondagas.  In  1709 
he  again  commands  at  Fort  Chambly,  and  on  November  13th 
of  that  year,  at  the  isle  Dupas  in  Lake  St.  Peter,  takes  a  third 
wife,  Marguerite  Vauvril  de  Blazon,  widow  of  Major  Lambert 
Boucher  de  Grandpre.  The  next  year  he  was  made  Major 
of  Three  Rivers,  which  rank  he  held  at  death.  He  was  buried 
at  Montreal  July  21,  1711.  His  son  Nicolas,  spoken  of  as 
Rigauville,  is  to  have  a  part  in  our  regional  history  scarcely 
less  important  than  that  of  the  father,  being  in  command  at 
Fort  Niagara  for  many  years. 

An  incident  connected  with  the  service  of  Desbergeres  has 
been  preserved,  which  though  trivial,  somewhat  illustrates  sol- 
dier life  at  these  frontier  posts. 

When  he  came  to  the  relief  of  the  Niagara  garrison  in  1688 
Desbergeres  brought  with  him  a  favorite  dog  named  "  Vingt- 
Sols  "  (Twenty  Sous),  which  rendered  good  service  as  sen- 
tinel. A  son  of  this  dog  was  called  by  the  soldiers  "  Mon- 
sieur de  Niagara."  Taken  by  his  master  to  Chambly,  he  de- 
veloped a  fondness  for  running  through  the  woods  to  a  neigh- 
boring post,  La  Prairie  de  la  Madclaine,  where  there  was  an- 
other dog.  Seeing  that  he  went  and  came  faithfully,  the  sol- 
diers fastened  letters  to  his  collar,  which  never  failed  of  de- 
livery. In  this  way  was  established  the  dog-post  (paste  a 
pat  and}  which  was  so  useful  and  became  so  famous  that  Des- 
bergeres applied  to  the  Intendant  at  Quebec  for  the  allowance 
of  a  daily  ration  for  Monsieur  de  Niagara,  and  it  was  granted. 
Further,  he  was  formally  added  to  the  garrison  list,  and  at 
roll-call  would  reply  —  or  some  one  would  reply  for  him  if  he 
was  not  there  — "  En  course  "  or  "  a  la  cliasse"  It  is  edifv- 


DENONVILLE'S  CAMPAIGN  129 

ing  to  read  that  "  this  continued,  even  several  years,  after  his 
death."  17 

17  The  story  of  "Monsieur  de  Niagara"  has  been  a  favorite  one  with 
French  Canadian  writers,  and  has  been  retold  with  variations  and  details 
here  omitted,  for  two  hundred  years.  Sometimes  it  is  ascribed  to  Chaus- 
segros  de  Lery,  who  lived  long  after  "  M.  de  Niagara  "  had  trotted  his  last 
course.  It  really  originated  with  Gedeon  de  Catalogne,  who  was  both 
author  and  soldier,  and  who  came  to  Niagara  with  Desbergeres  and  may 
be  said  to  have  "  personally  known "  this  useful  servitor  of  the  King. 


CHAPTER  IX 

WILDERNESS  STRIFE 

ENGLISH  CLAIMS  REASSERTED  —  ADVENTURES  OP  THE  BARON  LA 
HONTAN,  EXPLORER  OP  THE  SOUTH  SHORE  OF  LAKE  ERIE  — 
THE  REVENGE  OF  DUBEAU  —  FRONTENAC'S  RAID  OF  1696. 

IT  will  readily  be  believed  that  after  the  stirring  events  of 
this  summer  of  1687,  the  correspondence  between  the  rival  gov- 
ernors did  not  abate  in  vigorous  expression.  On  hearing  of 
MacGregorie's  expedition,  Denonville  had  written  in  broad 
terms,  accusing  Dongan  of  perfidy.  The  English  Governor  re- 
plied: "  I  have  been  informed  that  you  are  told  I  have  given  to 
Indians  orders  to  rob  the  French  wherever  they  could  meet  them. 
That  is  as  false  as  'tis  true  that  God  is  in  heaven."  Denon- 
ville refused  to  release  MacGregorie  and  the  other  prisoners, 
on  the  ground  that  Dongan  was  supplying  the  Senecas  with 
guns  and  ammunition.  If  he  was  not  doing  so  directly,  it 
became  easy  for  the  Five  Nations  to  get  these  and  other  goods 
at  Albany.  August  21st  the  French  Governor  wrote  again, 
upbraiding  Dongan  for  sending  the  expeditions  to  Mackinac, 
"  where  no  Englishman  ever  had  put  a  foot  and  where  our 
Frenchmen  have  been  established  over  60  years."  Dongan 
replied  that  he  had  given  no  passes  for  his  people  to  trade  at 
Mackinac,  but  among  the  Ottawas,  "  where  I  thought  it  might 
be  as  free  for  us  to  trade  as  for  you."  "  'Tis  a  very  hard 
thing,"  he  observed  in  a  subsequent  letter,  "  that  all  the  Coun- 
tryes  a  Frenchman  walks  over  in  America  must  belong  to  Can- 
ada." This  conception  of  the  French  theory  and  practice  of 
occupancy  evidently  pleased  him,  for  he  uses  the  idea  often 
in  his  letters.  In  reply  to  Denonville's  agents,  in  February, 
1688,  speaking  of  MacGregorie's  seizure,  he  observes:  "I 
am  sure  it  was  out  of  the  Government  of  Canada,  except  a 
Frenchman  by  tredding  upon  the  earth  makes  itt  belong  to 
that  Collony." 

Finally    Denonville    sent    back    Major    MacGregorie,    and 

130 


WILDERNESS  STRIFE  131 

with  him,  at  Dongan's  suggestion,  two  agents,  Father  Fran- 
ciscus  Valiant,  a  Jesuit,  and  Elambert  Dumont,  a  layman,  to 
treat  with  Dongan  and  try  to  reach  terms  of  agreement.  It 
does  not  appear  that  they  met  to  discuss  the  situation ;  but 
they  exchanged  a  series  of  papers  in  which  the  claims  of  the 
respective  colonies  were  urged  sometimes  with  vigor  and  adroit- 
ness, sometimes  with  evasion  and  sophistries.  Dongan  de- 
manded the  "  breaking  down  "  of  the  fort  at  Niagara ;  the  re- 
storation to  his  men  of  all  they  had  been  robbed  of,  or  its 
equivalent;  and  the  return  of  the  prisoners.  The  arguments 
were  long,  and  their  exchange  continued  through  the  month  of 
February,  1688.  At  length  Father  Valiant  "demanded" 
that  the  points  at  issue  be  referred  to  the  two  kings,  and  that 
a  truce  for  15  months  be  agreed  upon:  "within  this  time  we 
shall  hear  what  the  two  kings  shall  have  agreed  upon  concern- 
ing the  limits,  the  Fort  of  Niagara,  and  the  restitution  of 
the  goods  ...  if  they  command  the  forts  to  be  demolished, 
the  goods  to  be  restored,  then  those  shall  be  demolished  and 
these  be  restored."  "  Governor  Dongan,"  urged  Father 
Valiant,  "  says  that  he  had  power  to  send  Major  Maggre- 
gorys  and  others  to  the  Ottowawas,  because  he  does  not  ac- 
knowledge them  for  the  subjects  of  the  King  of  France.  Had 
not  we  the  selfsame  reason  to  say  we  had  power  to  build  a  fort 
on  Niagara  to  make  war  with  the  Indians,  seeing  for  better 
reasons  we  do  not  acknowledge  them  for  subjects  of  the  King 
of  England?''  Addressing  Dongan  the  priest  continued: 

"  You  demand,  first,  the  fort  in  Niagra  to  be  demolished. 
This  cannot  be  granted  :  first,  because  it  is  built  there  by  the 
command  of  the  Most  Christian  Kinge,  and  therefore  it  must 
be  demolished  by  his  command  :  secondly,  because  it  would  not 
be  reasonable  to  demolish  it  before  there  be  a  general  peace, 
since  in  the  meantime  we  have  nerd  of  the  fort  to  protect  our- 
selfs  from  the  Indians  untill  there  bee  something  concluded 
concerning  the  limitts.  This  onlv  I  can  declare  and  grant, 
that  foresaid  fort  does  not  give  us  anv  other  right  to  those 
Indians,  than  what  we  pretend  to  have  longe  since."  And 
the  other  points  in  Dongan's  demand  were  as  stoutly  and  in- 
geniously argued,  only  to  be  as  ably  rebutted  by  the  redoubt- 


132  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

able  Dongan.  In  his  last  paper  to  the  French  agents  occurs 
this  striking  sentence:  "  [As]  for  the  5  nations  of  Indians 
being  the  Kinge  of  Englands  subjects,  I  know  no  better  judges 
than  themselves,  and  very  ancient  records  of  there  [their] 
submission  which  is  a  very  just  title  and  farr  better  than  that 
of  yours  (of  a  poore  Frenchmans  goeinge  with  a  pack  upon  his 
back)  to  Onyagro." 

In  less  than  a  month  after  Denonville  built  his  fort  at 
Niagara,  Governor  Dongan  had  known  all  about  it  and  was 
taking  council  with  the  Iroquois  for  its  overthrow.  He 
gathered  the  chief  men  of  all  the  Five  Nations  in  the  city  hall 
at  Albany,  August  5th,  discussed  with  them  Denonville's  raid 
and  fort-building  at  Niagara,  and  told  them  he  was  laying 
these  things  before  the  King.  "  I  think  it  very  necessary," 
he  added,  "  for  the  brethren's  security  and  assistance,  and  to 
the  endamageing  the  French,  to  build  a  fort  upon  the  lake, 
where  I  may  keep  stores  and  provisions  in  case  of  necessity," 
and  he  urged  them  to  tell  him  "  where  he  might  build,"  and 
to  "  looke  out  sharpe  for  fear  of  being  surprized  "  as  "  the 
strength  of  the  French  will  be  at  Cadarahqui  and  Onyagaro, 
where  they  build  a  fort  now." 

Dongan  submitted  the  whole  weary  dispute  to  the  Earl  of 
Sutherland,  Lord  President  of  the  King's  Privy  Council,  send- 
ing his  report  over  to  London  by  John  Palmer.  The  suc- 
ceeding half  century  was  to  see  many  special  messengers  dis- 
patched to  Whitehall  in  behalf  of  British  claims  on  the 
Niagara  and  the  Great  Lakes,  but  none  of  them  was  a  more 
picturesque  figure  in  our  colonial  history  than  Palmer.  An 
English  lawyer,  he  had  come  to  New  York  about  1675  from 
Barbadocs.  He  is  soon  spoken  of  as  "  Captain "  Palmer ; 
was  made  King's  Ranger  for  Staten  Island  and  held  other  of- 
fices. He  was  a  close  friend  of  Governor  Dongan,  who  in 
1684  made  him  the  first  judge  of  the  New  York  Court  of  Oyer 
and  Tcrminer.  The  story  of  his  imprisonment  in  later  years 
is  part  of  a  very  stirring  chapter  of  New  York  and  Massachu- 
setts colonial  politics,  but  it  was  as  "  Judge  "  Palmer,  one 
of  the  most  influential  men  in  Dongan's  administration, 


WILDERNESS  STRIFE  133 

that  he  now  visited  London,  and  laid  before  Sutherland  Don- 
gan's  representation  of  what  should  be  done  to  secure  the 
Niagara  region  to  Great  Britain.  The  following  extracts 
from  the  Governor's  long  report  will  suffice  to  illustrate  the 
arguments  relating  to  the  Niagara  and  the  Lakes,  as  well  as 
the  singular  spelling  of  that  period : 

My  Lord:  When  his  Maj'ts  Commands  came  to  my  hand  a 
Father  and  another  gent  were  here  who  came  along  witli  Magrcgory 
from  ye  Gov'r  of  Canida.  They  would  not  come  to  any  agreement 
to  demolish  the  ffort  at  Onijagaro  [Niagara]  nor  to  restore  the 
Goods  alleadgeing  it  was  set  up  by  ye  French  Kings  Direction,  and 
that  they  had  no  orders  for  pulling  it  downe,  all  there  drift  was  to 
gain  a  cessation  for  1  o  Monthes  and  that  the  matters  in  Difference 
might  be  referred  for  a  Decision  at  home:  upon  which  I  called  the 
chicffe  of  the  five  nations  of  Indians  together  who  are  now  with 
me,  and  I  proposed  it  to  them,  to  see  what  there  opinions  would  be, 
who  unanimously  agreed  not  to  consent  to  any  thing  'till  these  De- 
mands were  complyed  wth  also  they  desyred  that  what  goods  were 
taken  from  them  they  might  be  returned,  and  another  fort  that  lyes 
in  ye  way  of  there  Bever  hunting  broaken  downe,  for  say  they  wee 
are  in  prison  so  long  as  they  are  standing,  and  further  that  ye  Fort 
at  Cadaracqui  might  also  be  destroyed  saying  ye  French  had  no 
right  to  it,  and  that  they  only  gave  leave  to  one  La  Sail  to  have 
a  man  there  to  Dress  there  armes  as  they  came  from  hunting,  and 
since  the  French  have  built  a  stone  fort  there;  as  to  Onyagaro  they 
have  not  the  least  pretense  of  right  to  it,  only  that  a  poor  French- 
man went  there  to  trade  with  ye  Indians;  they  may  have  the  like 
pretence  to  all  those  parts  of  America,  for  they  doe  the  same  almost 
everywhere. 

Considering  how  feeble  and  helpless  if  not  hopeless  the 
establishment  was,  the  student  peruses  with  some  skepticism 
the  glowing  reports  that  wen-  sent  to  France.  One  questions 
whether  Dcnonvillc  believed  all  he  wrote.  There  even  was  pre- 
pared a  "  Memoir  on  the  advantage  of  the  establishment  of  a 
Fort  at  Niagara,"  inspired  if  not  written  by  the  Governor,  in 
which,  after  setting  forth  that  the  British  were  seeking  to 
seduce  the  [roquois  and  to  possess  themselves  of  the  control  of 
the  Lukes  and  the  fur  trade,  it  was  stated: 


134  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

Now,  that  things  are  changed  by  the  favor  of  God,  and  the  King 
takes  care  of  that  country,  it  appears  very  easy  to  return  the  com- 
pliment to  those  English  if,  as  there  is  reason  to  hope,  his  Majesty's 
arms  are  victorious  over  the  Iroquois,  and  these  are  reduced;  par- 
ticularly by  erecting  a  fort  at  Niagara  with  a  strong  garrison  for 
the  protection  of  the  settlers  who  will  establish  themselves  there  in 
order  to  clear  the  land,  which  is  most  excellent,  and  to  carry  on  the 
trade  in  furs  with  the  Iroquois  Indians,  who  do  all  their  hunting 
on  the  lands  belonging  to  the  King's  domain.  The  English  will 
thus  be  deprived  of  a  trade  in  peltries  amounting  to  400,000  livres 
yearly,  which  will  be  very  beneficial  to  the  French  colony. 

All  the  inhabitants  of  said  Niagara  will  pay  to  the  revenue 
(ferme^)  of  his  Majesty's  domain  the  duty  of  one  fourth  of  the 
beavers,  and  one-tenth  of  the  moose  (orignaux)  the  same  as  at 
Quebec.  This  will  increase,  by  a  large  sum,  the  King's  revenue  in 
said  country,  and  should  his  Majesty  think  fit  to  leave  it  to  a  private 
person  when  the  Iroquois  are  pacified,  inasmuch  as  the  establishment 
of  the  said  Niagara  must  be  considered  a  newly  discovered  country. 
Persons  will  be  found  who  will  give  a  considerable  sum  for  the 
privilege  of  receiving  the  duties  on  the  beaver  and  moose  which  will 
be  reported  from  said  Niagara. 

Among  the  followers  of  Denonville  who  shared  with  him  the 
campaign  against  the  Senecas  and  the  building  of  Fort  Denon- 
ville on  the  Niagara,  was  the  young  Gascon  already  mentioned, 
Louis-Armand  de  Lorn  d'Arce,  better  known  as  the  Baron  de 
La  Hontan,  the  seigneurial  designation  being  derived  from  his 
ancestral  village  of  La  Hontan  in  the  Basse-Pyrenees.  Com- 
ing to  America  in  1683,  a  lad  of  IT,  he  served  in  Canada  for 
ten  years.  His  career  as  a  whole,  his  picturesque  personality, 
and  his  vivacious  writings  in  many  editions  have  been  made  so 
familiar  to  students  of  that  period  that  it  may  suffice  here 
briefly  to  narrate  the  incidents  of  his  career  on  and  near  the 
Niagara. 

Fort  Denonville,  he  tells  us,  was  built  in  three  days.  On 
August  1,  1687,  Dcnonville's  savage  allies  took  leave  of  him 
with  elaborate  speech-making,  of  which  La  Hontan  made  re- 
port. The  western  tribes  assured  Denonville  that  they  were 
pleased  to  see  a  fort  so  conveniently  placed,  since  it  would 
"  favor  their  retreat  from  any  expedition  against  the  Iroquois." 


WILDERNESS  STRIFE  135 

They  urged  him  to  continue  to  make  war,  winter  and  summer, 
upon  the  Iroquois,  and  pledged  their  help.  "  Mr.  Denon- 
ville,"  says  our  chronicler,  '*  gave  them  fresh  assurances  of  his 
intention  to  carry  on  the  war,  in  spite  of  all  the  efforts  of 
the  Iroquois,  and,  in  a  word,  protested  that  he  would  prose- 
cute this  design  so  vigorously  that  in  the  end  these  barbarians 
should  be  either  quite  cut  off,  or  obliged  to  shift  their  seats," 
i.e.,  remove  elsewhere. 

On  the  very  day  of  this  impressive  leave-taking,  Denonville 
dispatched  La  Hontan  on  service  to  the  westward.  A  com- 
pany of  picked  men  was  assigned  him.  His  brother  officers, 
he  says,  "  made  me  presents  of  Cloaths,  Tobacco,  Books,  and 
an  infinity  of  other  things,  that  they  could  spare  without  any 
inconvcniency,  because  they  were  then  upon  their  return  to 
the  Colony."  The  story  of  his  American  adventures,  as  after- 
wards published,  purports  to  be  a  scries  of  letters  to  his  rela- 
tives ;  that  from  which  we  quote,  though  probably  penned  in 
Portugal  in  1694,  is  dated  "  Niagara,  August  2,  1687,"  at 
which  time  he  was  undoubtedly  on  our  river.  "  The  Men  of 
my  Detachment,"  he  continues,  "  are  brisk  proper  fellows,  and 
my  Canows  both  ne\v  and  large."  In  company  with  Duluth 
and  Henri  de  Tonty,  and  followed  bv  a  horde  of  savages,  the 
young  officer  cmbarged  at  Niagara,  August  3d.  At  the  en- 
trance to  Niagara  gorge,  where  navigation  stops,  they  met 
Claude  Grisolon  de  la  Tourcttc,  brother  of  Duluth,  who  had 
come  with  a  single  canoe  alone  all  the  way  from  Mackinac,  to 
join  Denonville's  army. 

La  Hontan  tells  at  length  of  the  passing  of  the  portage. 
"  Before  we  got  at  anv  beaten  or  level  Path,  we  were  forced 
to  climb  up  three  Mountains,  upon  which  an  hundred  Iroquese 
might  have  knocked  us  all  on  the  head  with  stones."  Before 
the  portage  was  accomplished  they  discovered,  he  savs,  "  a 
thousand  Iroquese  that  marched  towards  us.  .  .  .  We  were  in 
danger  of  losing  our  Lives  as  well  as  our  baggage;  for  we 
had  not  embarked  above  the  Fall  half  a  quarter  of  an  hour, 
when  tin-  Enemy  appeared  upon  the  Strcight  side.  I  assure 
you,  I  'scap'd  verv  narrowly:  for  about  a  quarter  of  an  hour 
before,  I  and  three  or  four  Savages  had  gone  500  paces  out 


136  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

of  our  Road  to  look  upon  that  fearful  Cataract;  and  'twas 
as  much  as  I  could  do,  to  get  at  the  Canows  before  they  put 
off.  To  be  taken  by  such  cruel  Fellows  was  to  me  no  trifling 
thing,"  and  he  quotes  with  the  aptness  of  the  scholarly  wit  he 
was  : 

" '  II  morir  e  niente,  ma  il  vivere  brugiando  troppo.' '' 

La  Hontan's  much  quoted  description  of  the  Falls,  which 
he  found  "  seven  or  eight  hundred  foot  high,"  may  here  be 
omitted.  After  rowing  all  night,  their  party  "  arrived  next 
morning  at  the  mouth  of  the  Lake,  which  appeared  to  be  in- 
different rapid.  Then  we  were  secure  from  all  danger,  for 
the  Iroquese  Canows  are  so  dull  and  large  that  they  cannot 
sail  near  so  quick  as  those  made  of  Birch-bark.  The  former 
are  made  of  Elm-bark,  which  is  very  heavy,  and  their  form  is 
very  aukard ;  for  they  are  so  long  and  broad  that  30  Men 
row  in  them,  two  abreast,  whether  sitting  or  standing,  and  the 
sides  are  so  low  that  they  dare  not  venture  'em  upon  the 
Lakes,  tho'  the  wind  be  very  slack."  We  may  smile  at  La 
Hontan's  "  800-foot  "  Niagara  Falls,  and  hesitate  to  accept 
the  1000  Iroquois  on  the  portage;  but  we  cannot  deny  the  ac- 
curacy of  his  pages  in  countless  other  matters.  He  was  a  close 
observer,  a  clear  and  entertaining  writer.  There  is  no  record 
of  his  time  more  valuable  in  many  ways. 

The  boats  skirted  the  north  shore  of  Lake  Erie,  portaged 
across  Long  Point  instead  of  going  around  it,  and  on  Sep- 
tember 6th  entered  the  Detroit  River.  For  some  months  La 
Hontan  was  stationed  ?t  the  little  Fort  St.  Joseph  on  the  St. 
Clair  at  the  entrance  to  Lake  Huron  —  the  fort  which  Du- 
luth  had  built  in  1686,  to  keep  the  English  out  of  the  upper 
Lakes.  The  Jesuit  missionary,  Avenau,  joined  him;  and  he 
says  he  "  waited  with  impatience  for  the  arrival  of  one  Tur- 
cot  and  four  more  of  the  courcurs  de  bois  "  whom  Denonville 
had  promised  to  send,  to  hunt  for  the  post.  They  did  not 
come,  but  four  Canadians,  expert  hunters,  brought  in  game 
enough  to  keep  them  alive.  It  may  be  observed  in  this  connec- 

G  "  To  die  is  nothing:,  hut  to  live  in  the  midst  of  fire  is  too  much,"  al- 
luding to  the  Iroquois  custom  of  burning  prisoners. 


WILDERNESS  STRIFE  137 

tion  that  had  the  garrison  at  Niagara  in  1687-8  consisted  of 
fewer  French  soldiers  and  more  Canadians,  they  probably  would 
have  come  through  in  better  condition.  The  former,  knowing 
nothing  of  American  forest  life,  were  infantile  in  their  ineffi- 
ciency and  timorous  inability;  the  latter  knew  how  to  hunt, 
and  to  live ;  and,  as  the  coining  years  were  to  prove,  were  a 
better  reliance  for  frontier  fighting  than  the  troops  of  France. 

Turcot  we  have  already  met,  with  La  Salle's  deserters. 
Outlawr  that  he  was,  he  was  probably  no  worse  than  many 
others  of  his  time,  harbored  in  Indian  lodges  and  at  distant 
posts.  La  Hontan  would  have  preferred  him  to  the  priest.  In 
December  there  came  in  upon  him  a  band  of  Ilurons  led  by 
one  Saentsouan.  The  season  being  too  late  to  proceed  further 
in  their  canoes,  these  and  their  "  baggage  "  were  left  with  La 
Hontan,  while  they  marched  overland  to  Niagara,  doing  the 
300  miles  in  10  days.  Somewhere  in  the  Iroquois  country  they 
fell  upon  a  village,  killed  many,  carried  olF  14  prisoners  and 
four  women,  and  returned  with  a  loss  of  but  three  men. 
"  Among  the  Captive  Slaves,  there  were  three  who  had  made 
part  of  the  number  of  the  1000  Iroquesc  who  mean'd  to  ap- 
pear before  my  Post  without  any  delay."  This  news,  he  says, 
"  gall'd  me  to  the  last  degree,"  and  made  him  very  careful  of 
his  corn.  But  the  Iroquois  did  not  trouble  him.  In  the  spring 
of  1688  he  went  to  Mackinac,  for  corn;  then  appears  to  have 
wandered,  with  hunting  and  war  parties,  to  Sault  Stc.  Marie, 
and  far  east  of  Lake  Huron,  not  returning  to  his  post  on  the 
St.  Clair  until  July  1st.  On  the  3d  he  set  out  again,  ap- 
parently with  only  an  Indian  escort,  "  and  stood  to  the  south 
side  of  the  Lake  Erie." 

This  is  the  first  account  we  have  of  any  exploration  of  the 
south  shore;  the  pity  is,  it  tells  us  so  little,  and  some  of  that 
so  wrong.  La  Hontan  claims  to  have  crossed  through  t he- 
islands  of  the  western  end  of  the  lake,  thence  to  have  skirted 
the  shore  as  far  as  the  "'  River  of  Comic,"  where  he  says  they 
arrived  July  17th.  On  the  map  published  in  his  book,  a  dotted 
line  shows  his  route.  The  Conde  is  drawn  as  a  large  stream, 
entering  the  lake  from  the  southeast  at  the  extreme  south- 
eastern point  of  the  shore.  Its  actual  prototype  is  probably 


138  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

the  Cattaraugus,  although  La  Hontan  says  it  was  20  leagues 
(about  50  miles)  from  the  outlet  of  Lake  Erie.  It  "  runs  60 
leagues  in  length  without  cataracts,"  says  our  explorer,  "  if 
we  may  credit  the  savages,  who  assur'd  me  that  we  may  go 
from  its  source  to  another  river  that  falls  into  the  sea,  with- 
out any  other  land-carriage  than  one  of  a  league  in  length, 
between  the  [one]  river  and  the  other."  There  is  here  evi- 
dently some  vague  notion  of  the  Allegheny  but  no  clear  idea 
of  distance.  La  Hontan's  "  river  of  Conde  "  found  little  ac- 
ceptance with  geographers ;  on  most  of  the  maps,  later  than 
his,  it  is  not  shown;  but  it  does  reappear,  many  years  after, 
to  the  great  misleading  of  certain  theorists ;  as  will  be  duly 
related. 

La  Hontan  says  he  saw  only  the  mouth  of  the  Conde,  where 
they  landed  July  17th,  and  "  the  savages  fell  to  work  cutting 
down  trees,  and  making  a  redoubt  of  stakes,  or  pales,  for  the 
security  of  our  canows  and  baggage,  and  for  a  safe  retreat 
to  our  selves  in  case  of  necessity."  He  stayed  in  the  redoubt 
while  a  war-party  marched  off,  up  the  river,  intending  to  sur- 
prise a  village  of  Cayugas,  who  came  there  to  fish.  Two  days 
later  his  Indians  came  running  back,  pursued  by  "  not  less 
than  400 "  Iroquois.  There  follows  an  involved  account  of 
their  further  progress  by  canoe  to  a  little  island,  where  they 
found  shelter  in  a  creek ;  though  one  is  at  a  loss  to  locate 
this  at  the  eastern  end  of  the  lake,  unless  indeed  they  had 
turned  westward  and  were  on  the  peninsula  opposite  Erie.7 
There  were  several  encounters  between  La  Hontan's  Ottawas 
and  the  Iroquois,  who  had  with  them  18  Miami  prisoners. 
There  was  an  ambuscade  and  an  attack.  Owing  to  the  haste 
of  the  Ottawas  in  firing  most  of  the  enemy  escaped,  "  abating 
for  10  or  12  whose  heads  were  brought  into  the  little  fort 
where  I  stayed.  The  Slaves  indeed  were  all  retaken,  and  so 
rescued  from  the  Cruelty  of  these  Tygers."  With  this  La 
Hontan  says  he  rested  satisfied;  the  captives  were  stowed  in 
the  canoes  and  the  party  steered  for  the  Detroit  which  was 

7  La  Hontan's  map  shows  an  island  in  Lake  Eric  at  the  entrance  to  the 
Niagara,  but  the  dotted  line,  indicating  the  voyape  of  1688,  does  not  reach 
it.  The  map  does  not  show  Presqu'  Isle  peninsula. 


WILDERNESS  STRIFE  139 

gained  August  13th ;  some  days  were  spent  in  hunting,  and  on 
the  2-ith  they  were  at  Fort  St.  Joseph. 

Despite  its  confusion  and  the  exaggeration  of  the  river 
Conde,  the  account  of  this  expedition  along  the  south  shore  of 
Lake  Erie  is  too  explicit  and  circumstantial  in  many  respects 
to  be  regarded  as  fiction.  When  La  Hontan  invented  his  nar- 
rative he  did  not  give  precise  dates  for  incidents  such  as  are 
indicated  above.  Of  those  who  had  sailed  Lake  Erie  before 
him,  Joliet,  Galinee,  Tonty,  La  Salle  and  Dautray  make  up 
the  honor-roll,  but  none  of  them  had  touched  the  south  shore; 
nor  do  we  find  record  of  any  white  man  who  had,  prior  to  this 
coming  of  La  Hontan  in  1688. 

Arrived  at  his  lonely  and  neglected  post  of  St.  Joseph,  La 
Hontan  found  awaiting  him  Michitonka  and  his  band  of  80 
Miamis,  just  come  from  Niagara,  where  they  had  saved  the 
remnant  of  the  garrison  from  utter  starvation,  as  already  nar- 
rated. Michitonka's  people  were  wild  with  joy  at  receiving 
from  La  Hontan  their  captive  tribesmen,  of  whose  plight  they 
had  not  known.  On  his  part  La  Hontan  first  heard  from  the 
chief  what  had  befallen  at  Niagara.  "  Michitonka  acquainted 
me,"  he  writes,  "  that  after  he  went  to  the  Fort  of  Niagara, 
with  a  design  to  make  some  Expedition  into  the  Country  of 
the  Tsonontouans  [Scnecas],  he  found  that  the  Scurvey  had 
made  such  a  terrible  havock  in  that  Fort,-  that  it  had  swept 
off  the  Commander  and  all  the  Soldiers,  bating  12,  who  had 
the  good  luck  to  get  over  it,  as  well  as  M.  DC  Bergeres  [Des- 
bergeres],  who  by  the  advantage  of  a  hale  Constitution  had 
stemm'd  the  raging  Violence  of  that  Distemper."  We  have 
noted  the  fact  that  Dcsbergeres  came  to  Niagara  in  the  spring, 
with  the  relief  party.  The  Miami  chief  further  reported,  not 
quite  accurately,  that  Fort  Frontenac  was  as  badly  off  as  Fort 
Denonville. 

La  Hontan  reflected  on  this  and  other  news  that  Michitonka 
gave  him;  nor  did  it  take  him  long  to  decide  that  his  proper 
course  was  to  abandon  Fort  St.  Joseph,  service  at  which  he 
had  always  found  irksome.  lie  called  a  council  which  "came 
to  this  Resolution:  That  since  the  Marquis  dc  Denonville  had 
a  mind  to  clap  up  a  Peace,  and  the  fort  of  Niagara  was  abdi- 


140  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

cated,  the  fort  I  then  commanded  would  be  of  no  use."  He 
had  ammunition  and  provisions  for  not  more  than  two  months. 
He  decided  to  abandon  his  charge,  a  decision  which  he  as- 
sures us,  "  afforded  matter  of  Joy  to  the  Soldiers,  who  were 
afraid  of  being  obliged  to  a  more  rigorous  course  of  Abstinence 
in  that  Post  than  they  had  formerly  undergone ;  for  the  meas- 
ures of  a  critical  Abstinence  do  not  sit  well  upon  a  Soldier's 
Stomach."  Loading  what  they  could  into  their  canoes,  they 
set  fire  to  the  fort,  August  27th,  and  as  the  smoke  of  the 
burning  huts  and  palisades  rolled  above  the  clearing,  they 
paddled  off  for  Mackinac.  The  following  winter,  according 
to  his  own  account,  he  spent  in  travels  far  west  and  south. 
He  claims  to  have  explored  a  great  river  which  he  calls  "  Long," 
coming  into  the  Mississippi  from  the  west ;  but  this  part  of 
his  narrative  lacks  the  explicitness  of  the  voyage  along  the 
south  shore  of  Lake  Erie,  and  is  commonly  regarded  as  fic- 
tion. He  reappeared  at  Mackinac  in  May,  1689,  and  at  Mont- 
real in  July,  going  down  by  the  Ottawa  River  route.  Instead 
of  being  censured  or  broken  in  rank  because  of  the  irregular- 
ities of  his  western  service,  he  was  chosen  by  the  Governor 
(Frontenac)  as  a  special  messenger  to  Paris  to  announce  the 
failure  of  the  English  expedition  under  Phips.  He  is  back 
again  in  Canada  in  1691,  but  does  not  again  come  into  our  re- 
gion, nor  need  we  here  follow  further  his  personal  adventures. 

In  a  letter  which  purports  to  have  been  written  at  Nantes, 
October  25,  1692,  first  printed  in  his  work  in  1703,  La  Hon- 
tan  outlines  a  plan  for  fortifying  the  Niagara  and  adjacent 
lakes,  which  he  says  he  submitted  "  above  a  year  agoe,"  say 
in  1691,  to  Frontenac,  "and  is  what  he  would  have  me  still 
to  undertake  " : 

I  project,  therefore,  to  build  and  maintain  three  Forts  upon  the 
course  of  the  Lakes,  with  some  Vessels  that  shall  go  with  Oars, 
which  I  will  build  according  to  my  Fancy;  but  they  being  light,  and 
of  great  carriage,  may  be  managed  either  with  Oars  or  a  Sail,  and 
will  also  be  able  to  bear  the  shocks  of  the  Waves.  I  demand  50 
Seamen  of  the  French  Biscay,  for  they  are  known  to  be  the  most 
dexterous  and  able  Mariners  that  are  in  the  World.  I  must  also 
have  200  soldiers,  chosen  out  of  the  Troops  of  Canada. 


WILDERNESS  STRIFE  141 

I  will  build  three  little  Castles  in  several  places;  one  at  the  mouth 
of  the  Lake  Errie,  which  you  see  in  my  Map  of  Canada,  under  the 
name  of  Fort  Suppose,  besides  two  others.  The  second  I  will  build 
in  the  same  place  where  it  was  when  I  maintained  it,  in  the  years 
1G87  and  1688  .  .  .;  and  the  third  at  the  Mouth  of  the  Bay  of 
Toronto,  upon  the  same  Lake. 

"  Fort  Suppose  "  is  shown  on  La  Ilontan's  map  on  the  cast 
bank  of  the  Niagara  at  the  outlet  of  Lake  Erie  —  obviously 
on  the  high  bank  where  the  United  States  Government  in  1844 
built  Fort  Porter.  Our  young  officer  evidently  recognized  the 
strategic  and  commanding  value  of  that  point.  lie  was  the 
second  writer  (Hennepin  being  conceded  the  first)  to  allude  to 
the  site  of  the  present  city  of  Buffalo. 

His  second  fort  or  "  little  castle  "  was  to  have  stood  on 
the  site  of  the  burned  Fort  St.  Joseph  where  Fort  Gratiot  was 
afterwards  built,  at  the  entrance  to  Lake  Huron;  the  third  ap- 
parently on  Georgian  Bay,  which  he  calls  Toronto.  In  La 
Ilontan's  time  Lake  Simcoe  bore  that  name,  which  was  also 
applied  to  the  portage  to  Lake  Huron.  The  end  of  the  por- 
tage on  Georgian  Bay  is  evidently  the  site  designated.  He 
asked  for  90  men  for  the  defense  of  these  forts,  and  argued 
that  by  means  of  the  vessels  on  the  Lakes  he  could  easily  bring 
a  horde  of  Western  savages  to  the  Niagara  —  unloading  them, 
doubtless,  under  the  guns  of  Fort  Suppose  —  and  fall  with 
such  irresistible  fury  on  the  Iroquois  that  these  enemies  of 
the  French  would  be  forever  quieted,  or  annihilated.  This  fan- 
tastic project,  submitted  to  Frontenac,  won  such  approval  that 
—  according  to  La  Hontan  —  it  was  seriously  laid  before  Pon- 
chartrain;  but  that  great  Minister  found  many  reasons  why 
it  should  not  be  undertaken :  First,  France  could  not  spare 
the  seamen  La  Hontan  asked  for.  Second,  the  King  had  or- 
dered Frontenac  to  make  peace  with  the  Iroquois,  not  to  kill 
them.  Third,  not  least  of  ihe  reasons,  because  when  the  forts 
and  vessels  were  ready  the  friendlv  savages  would  prefer  war 
to  beaver  trapping  and  the  French  Ministry  thought  it  better 
to  promote  the  fur  trade  than  feuds  among  American  savages. 
Thus  La  Ilontan's  project,  the  first  ever  devised  for  the  de- 
fense of  the  upper  Niagara,  the  site  of  Buffalo  and  the  neigh- 


AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

boring   lake,    came    to    naught ;    whereupon   he,   not    one   whit 
cast  down,  turned  to  other  employments  and  adventures,  where 
we  may  not  follow  him.      Still  it  is  with  some  regret  that  we 
dismiss  him  from  our  story.     He  was  no  doubt  a  rather  im- 
proper young  man,  if  his  living  were  as  free  as  his  writing; 
but  he  was  certainly  a  clear-headed  man  who  did  his  own  think- 
ing, with  a  wit  all  the  more  enjoyable  because  used  at  the  ex- 
pense of  ponderous,  conceited  folk  who  took  their  sham  selves 
seriously.     His  mocking  spirit  made  him  no  friend  of  the  cler- 
ics.    A  youth,  fond  of  adventure  and  abounding  in  vitality, 
he  wrote  with  the  cynicism  of  an  aged  courtier  who  had  dis- 
covered  that   the   world   is   hollow.     About   to   make   a   most 
promising  marriage,  La  Hontan  deserted  the  waiting  maid,  to 
the  great  scandal  of  Quebec.     "  A  solitary  life  is  most  grate- 
ful to  me,"  he  boasts,  "  and  the  manners  of  the  savages  are 
perfectly  agreeable  to  my  palate."     Into  the  wilderness  of  the 
Lakes  and  the  Niagara  he  brought  books,  some  of  the  world's 
greatest,  and  quoted  from  Homer  or  from  his  beloved  Lucian 
to  illustrate  the  traits  of  the  savages.     He  came  to  know  sev- 
eral Indian  tongues  as  he  knew  Greek,  Latin,  Italian  and  his 
native  French,   and  discovered   a  beauty   and  nobility  in  the 
aborigines'  philosophy  of  life  which  made  him  ever  more  sa- 
tirical and  contemptuous  of  the  follies  and  shams  of  European 
society.     A  victory  over  the  English  —  at  Placentia  —  being 
ascribed   to   his   genius    and  valor,   he   declared  there   was   no 
just  ground  for  such  praise;  and  when  Louis  XIV  recognized 
his  services  by  making  him  Lieutenant  of  Newfoundland  and 
Acadia,  he  insisted  that  it  was  an  honor  mistakenly  bestowed. 
His  career  to  the  end  is  full  of  ups  and  downs,  and  the  sum 
of  his  achievements  is  not  great.     He  stands  alone  in  the  early 
history  of  our  region,  conspicuous  for  his  jaunty  humor,  his 
freedom  from  cant  and  pretense,  and  as  our  study  of  his  work 
inclines  us  to  conclude,  for  his  priority  as  an  explorer  of  the 
south  shore  of  Lake  Erie.8 

8  It  will  suffice  here  to  refer  the  reader  who  seeks  further  of  La  Hontan, 
to  two  excellent  studies:  ,T.  Edmond  Roy's  "  Le  Baron  de  La  Hontan,"  in 
Can.  Roy.  Soc.  Proceedings,  1S94;  and  Thwaite's  Introduction  to  the 
edition  of  La  Hontun's  "  New  Voyages,"  published  by  McClurg,  Chicago, 


WILDERNESS  STRIFE  143 

In  these  early  years  the  Indians  who  appeared  on  the  lower 
Lakes  and  the  Niagara  were  quite  as  apt  to  be  of  western  tribes 
as  of  the  Iroquois,  with  which  people,  especially  the  Senecas, 
we  have  come  to  associate  the  region.  The  Missisaugas,  who 
had  villages  to  the  west  of  the  Niagara,  were  of  Algonquin  stock. 
The  Miamis,  whose  war  parties  often  roamed  hither,  and  who 
saved  the  remnants  of  the  garrison  of  Fort  Denonvillc,  were 
a  people  of  southern  Michigan  and  neighboring  lands.  The 
()ttawras,  Sauteurs,  and  other  tribes  from  the  Northwest,  came 
down  the  Lakes  for  war  or  trade.  The  Foxes  and  Sauks  went 
west  from  the  Niagara  region.9 

Not  long  after  the  abandonment  of  Fort  Denonville,  one 
Dubeau,  a  Canadian  half-breed,  son  of  a  Frenchman  and  a 
Huron  woman,  who  is  described  as  "  one  of  the  strongest  men 
in  the  country,"  was  taken  captive  by  the  Iroquois,  who  bound 
him  and  guarded  him  closely.  As  he  could  speak  their  lan- 
guage he  gained  their  good-will,  so  that  they  trusted  him  a  lit- 
tle and  guarded  him  less  closely.  "  One  night,  as  they  were 
near  Niagara,  all  being  asleep  and  the  fire  dying  down,  Dubeau 
arose,  took  a  hatchet,  killed  all  eight  of  them,  and  made  his 
way  to  the  Ottawas."  A  brief  record  of  a  tragedy  typical 
of  the  region  and  the  time. 

There  are  few  annals  of  Lake  Erie  at  this  period.  Cadillac, 
after  three  years  at  Mackinac,  went  down  to  Quebec  in  1697, 
where  he  reported  that  he  had  ';  put  several  parties  in  the 
field  against  the  Iroquois,  and  our  allies  came  back  from  them 
victorious,  having  killed  or  taken  prisoners  102  warriors  of 
the  tribe  of  the  Sonnontouan  [Senecas].  The  last  fight  took 
place  on  the  water,  in  Lake  Erie,  with  equal  numbers ;  and  it 

1005.  Of  the  very  many  editions  of  La  Ilontan  the  English  edition  of 
1703  (the  year  in  which  the  first  French  issue  appeared),  is  rather  better 
reading  than  the  French;  few  books  give  us  better  the  English  idiom  of 
the  period;  and  it  admirably  preserves  the  manner  and  spirit  of  the  original. 
La  Ilontan  at  his  best  wrote  with  a  classic  pen;  the  grossness  and  in- 
decencies found  in  a  part  of  his  work  are  by  some  attributed  to  an  alleged 
eolaborator  or  editor,  the  publisher  Nicolas  Gueudeville,  an  unfrocked 
French  friar. 

i'Coll.  Wis.  Hist.  Soc.,  Ill,  -26:,. 

i°The  incident  of  Dubeau  is  recorded  in  the  Mt'moirc   ascribed  to  Cata- 
logne. 


144  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

was  so  fierce  that,  both  sides  having  come  to  land  with  their 
canoes,  they  dispatched  each  other  with  their  knives.  There 
remained  on  the  field  40  Iroquois  and  there  were  15  prisoners ; 
our  allies  sustained  a  small  loss."  n  Here  is  a  rare  chapter 
of  Lake  Erie  history,  the  details  of  which  may  only  be  found 
in  the  imagination. 

We  do  not  undertake  here  a  minute  study  of  events  at  Fort 
Frontenac,  elsewhere  recorded  by  competent  hands.  It  will 
suffice  to  note  that  its  destruction  was  ordered  in  1688,  when 
Niagara  was  abandoned.  Denonville,  writing  in  1690,  says 
he  "  sent  orders  to  the  captain  commanding  Fort  Cataracouy  " 
—  apparently  Valrenne  — "  to  abandon  that  post  after  hav- 
ing sapped  the  walls  by  piling  timber  well  smeared  with  tar 
against  them."  Instead  of  burning  the  fort,  Valrenne  under- 
took to  blow  it  up.  The  garrison  withdrew  to  Montreal,  but 
enough  of  the  structure  remained  to  serve  as  shelter  for  the 
Indians  of  the  neighborhood. 

The  year  before,  three  barks  had  sailed  the  lake;  two  of 
them  built  at  La  Salle's  orders,  now  scarcely  seaworthy;  a 
third  built  by  La  Barre.  During  the  temporary  abandonment 
of  Fort  Frontenac,  they  probably  made  their  base  at  what  was 
later  known  as  La  Galette,  near  present  Ogdensburg.  It  was 
not  until  1696  that  the  ruinous  fort  was  repaired  and  newly 
garrisoned. 

The  student  cannot  fail  to  observe  a  singular  inconsistency 
in  the  policy  and  conduct  of  the  French,  for  many  years  after 
their  entry  into  the  Lower  Lakes  as  a  theater  of  action.  De- 
pendent in  large  measure  for  the  success  of  their  undertakings 
on  the  good  will  of  the  aborigines,  over  and  over  again  they 
thwarted  their  own  ends  by  antagonizing  the  natives  on  whom 
they  must  rely.  Often  the  pretext  was,  that  the  Indians  were 
the  allies  of  the  English ;  but  the  result  was  none  the  less  dis- 
astrous. Even  if  no  tradition  lingered  of  Champlain's  mur- 
derous invasion  of  1615,  Denonville's  raid  on  the  Seneca  vil- 

11  Frontenac  to  the  Minister  for  Colonies,  Oct.  15,  1G97.  Some  further 
reference  to  this  fipht  is  contained  in  an  unpublished  narrative  by  M.  de 
Champigny  of  events  in  Canada,  1696-97;  it  is  stated  that  there  was  an 
ambuscade  and  fipht  on  Lake  Krie,  in  which  GO  Iroquois  were  slain  or 
drowned.  (Coll.  Moreau  St.  31  try,  Vol.  VI.) 


WILDERNESS  STRIFE  145 

lages  in  1687  not  only  made  all  French  operations  within  strik- 
ing reach  of  the  Senecas  more  hazardous,  but  naturally  in- 
clined the  Senecas  to  view  with  favor  the  friendly  offers  of  the 
English,  who  like  themselves  were  treated  as  enemies  by  the 
French.  There  were  numerous  episodes  of  the  sort,  which  do 
not  fall  within  the  scope  of  our  narrative,  the  effects  of  which 
were  like  that  of  the  raid  of  1687.  In  the  summer  of  1696 
the  veteran  Frontenac,  in  retaliation,  made  an  expedition 
against  the  Onondagas  which  was  in  effect  a  repetition  of  the 
unhappy  achievement  of  Dcnonvillc  nine  years  before.  It 
must  have  mention  here,  as  it  marks  another  step  in  the  grad- 
ual entry  of  the  French  into  Lake  Ontario.  With  a  motley 
force  of  French  regulars,  Canadian  militia  and  Indian  allies, 
Frontenac  set  out  from  Montreal,  July  4th.  Twelve  days 
brought  his  army  to  Fort  Frontenac,  12  more  to  the  mouth  of 
the  Oswego.  Passing  up  this  river,  they  gained  the  villages 
in  the  vicinity  of  Onondaga  Lake,  but  the  nation  had  fled. 
A  lame  girl  and  an  old  man  were  taken,  and  the  latter  tor- 
tured to  death.  Villages  of  the  Onondagas  and  Oneidas  were 
burned,  and  crops  destroyed.  Then  the  "  army  "  retraced  its 
way,  crossed  the  eastern  end  of  Ontario  and  regained  Quebec, 
to  await  proofs  that  the  blow  had  produced  a  chastened  and 
friendly  feeling  throughout  the  Six  Nations.12 

12  It  was  this  expedition  of  169(5  which  inspired  Alfred  B.  Street's  once 
popular  metrical  romance,  "  Frontenac."  With  all  its  erudition,  real  or 
assumed,  it  mingles  many  statements  which  will  perplex  the  reader  who 
has  regard  for  the  facts;  as  for  instance,  in  Canto  TIL: 

Tn    the    soft    twilight's    darkening    plow, 
Near  the  wild  shores  of  Ontario.  .  .  . 
....  a    brigantine   creeps 
Round  one  of  the  points  to  the  push  of 
her  sweeps. 

Only  by  poetic  license  can  a  brigantine  be  found  on  the  lake  at  that  date. 


CHAPTER  X 

JOXCAIRE  THE  ELDER 

THE  DOMINANT  FIGURE  OF  His  TIME  ON  THE  NIAGARA  —  THE  EM- 
BASSY OF  CLERAMBAUT  D'AIGREMONT  —  Two  NATIONS  STRIVE 
FOR  TRADE  CONTROL  —  RAUDOT  PICTURES  JONCAIRE. 

IN  tracing  the  history  of  the  Niagara  region,  one  comes  to 
a  time  when  records  seem  to  vanish  and  exploits  to  cease.  The 
story  of  the  early  cross-bearers  and  explorers  is  much  more 
than  twice  told.  The  splendid  adventuring  of  La  Salle  has 
been  made  the  most  familiar  chapter  in  the  annals  of  the  Great 
Lakes.  After  him,  in  the  closing  years  of  the  seventeenth  cen- 
tury, a  few  expeditions,  a  few  futile  campaigns  and  fated  under- 
takings, have  been  meagerly  chronicled.  We  read  of  La 
Barre's  foolish  and  fruitless  plans,  of  Denonville's  pathetic  and 
calamitous  establishment  at  the  mouth  of  the  Niagara.  But 
with  the  passing  of  La  Salle  from  the  pages  of  our  regional  his- 
tory, the  light  wanes,  the  shadows  deepen.  We  are  come  to  the 
Dark  Decades  on  the  Niagara. 

So  one  may  fairly  designate  the  first  forty  years  of  the 
eighteenth  century.  Speaking  broadly,  they  are  a  part  of  the 
century-long  strife  between  France  and  England  for  American 
supremacy.  There  were  periods,  it  is  true,  in  these  decades, 
when  the  rivals  were  nominally  at  peace.  The  Treaty  of  Rys- 
wick,  after  King  William's  War,  proclaimed  a  peace  that  was 
kept  from  1697  till  1702;  and  following  Queen  Anne's  War, 
the  Treaty  of  Utrecht  warded  off  armed  hostilities  from  1713 
to  1744.  Thus  for  thirty-five  years  —  seven-eighths  of  the 
period  under  notice  —  there  was  political  peace  between  France 
and  England;  but  on  the  Niagara,  and  the  Great  Lakes  which 
it  joins,  there  was  never  a  day  in  all  those  forty  years  when  the 
spirit  of  commercial  warfare  was  not  active. 

During  these  years,  the  American  colonies  of  the  rival  Pow- 
ers were  developing  along  widely  divergent  lines.  France  es- 
tablished her  distant  posts,  throughout  the  lake  and  trans- 

140 


JONCAIRE  THE  ELDER  147 

Alleghany  region,  her  very  energy  weakening  her  for  future  de- 
fense. The  English  colonies,  and  New  York  in  particular,  de- 
voted themselves  more  to  developing  the  home  territory.  Both 
cajoled  and  bargained  with  the  Indians,  both  exhausted  them- 
selves in  fighting  each  other.  It  was  the  time  when  the  slave 
trade  was  encouraged;  when  piracy  flourished.  But  recently 
were  the  days  when  Captain  Kidd  and  Morgan  and  Blackbeard 
and  their  kind  "  sailed  and  they  sailed  " ;  and  the  attention  of 
New  York's  Governors  was  divided  between  lawless  and  red- 
handed  exploits  on  the  seas,  the  quarrels  of  their  legislative 
councilors,  and  the  interference  of  the  French  in  their  reach  for 
the  fur  trade. 

Throughout  these  Dark  Decades  there  is  a  figure  in  our 
regional  history  which,  strive  as  we  may,  is  at  best  but  dimly 
seen.  Now  it  stands  on  the  banks  of  the  Niagara,  a  shadowy 
symbol  of  the  power  of  France.  Now  it  appears  in  fraternal 
alliance  with  the  Iroquois ;  and  anon  it  vanishes,  leaving  no 
more  trace  than  the  wiliest  warrior  of  the  Senecas,  silently 
disappearing  down  the  dim  aisles  of  his  native  forest.  Yet  it 
is  around  this  illusive  figure  that  the  story  of  the  Niagara  cen- 
ters for  forty  years. 

This  man  is  the  French  interpreter,  soldier,  and  Seneca  by 
adoption,  commonly  spoken  of  by  our  historical  writers  as 
C'habert  de  Joncaire  —  more  accurately,  as  Chabcrt  de  Jon- 
caire  the  elder.  He  never  attained  high  rank  in  the  service; 
he  was  a  very  humble  character  in  comparison  with  several  of 
his  titled  superiors  who  were  conspicuous  in  making  the  his- 
tory of  our  region  during  the  time  of  his  activity  hereabouts. 
But  it  was  primarily  through  his  skilful  diplomacy,  made  effi- 
cient by  his  peculiar  relations  to  the  Indians,  that  France  was 
able  to  gain  a  foothold  on  the  Niagara,  for  trade  and  for 
defense,  and  to  maintain  it  for  more  than  a  quarter  of  a  cen- 
tury. 

His  baptismal  name  was  Louis  Thomas  de  Joncaire ;  his 
seigneurial  title,  Sieur  de  Chain  rt.  The  son  of  Antoine  Marie 
and  Gabriel  Hardi,  he  was  born  about  1G70,1  in  the  little  town 
of  St.  Hemi,  of  the  diocese  of  Aries,  in  Provence.  As  a  child, 

1  Tanjruay  gives  this  elate.     A   report  of   1?!5J  says  he  was  born  in  1G6S. 


148  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

he  may  have  played  amid  the  mighty  ruins  of  Roman  amphi- 
theaters and  palaces,  and  have  grown  up  familiar  with  monu- 
ments of  a  civilization  which  antedated  by  many  centuries  the 
Christian  era. 

The  date  of  his  coming  to  America  is  uncertain;  possibly 
with  the  troops  of  the  Marine,  largely  from  Provence,  which 
accompanied  the  Chevalier  de  Vaudreuil  in  1687.  Some  years 
his  senior,  Vaudreuil  often  appears  as  his  patron  and  staunch- 
est  friend,  defending  his  character  when  vilified,  and  com- 
mending him  for  favor  and  promotion.  Other  evidence  tends 
to  indicate  that  he  accompanied  Frontenac  to  America  in  the 
capacity  of  quartermaster  (marechal-des-logis)  in  the  autumn 
of  1689.  We  find  him  holding  this  rank  in  the  Governor's 
Guard  in  1700.  June  14,  1704,  the  King  at  Versailles  named 
Joncaire  an  ensign  in  the  colonial  troops  and  approved  his 
going,  the  following  winter,  to  live  with  the  Senecas.  From 
1706  he  is  a  lieutenant  of  the  Marine.  In  an  official  letter 
of  1738  he  is  mentioned  as  having  served  as  interpreter  since 
1701. 

At  an  early  period  Joncaire  and  several  companions  were 
taken  captive  by  the  Iroquois.  The  exact  date  does  not  ap- 
pear. In  view  of  his  relations  to  Vaudreuil,  he  may  have  ac- 
companied that  officer  in  the  expedition  against  the  Senecas 
in  1687;  but  his  capture  by  the  Senecas  was  probably  in  1692 
or  1693.  The  earliest  account  of  Joncaire's  early  years  ap- 
pears to  be  that  contained  in  a  letter  written  by  M.  Raudot 
the  younger  —  son  of  the  Intendant  Raudot,  and  for  a  time 
joint  administrator  with  him  —  to  the  Minister,  Ponchartrain.2 
Under  date  of  Quebec,  November  1,  1709,  M.  Raudot  informed 
the  Minister  that  "  The  Sieur  Jonquaire,  officer  of  the  troops 
of  this  country  and  interpreter  of  the  Iroquois,  who  has  the 
confidence  and  friendship  of  M.  de  Vaudreuil,  does  not  con- 
duct himself,  as  it  appears  to  me,  for  the  good  of  His  Majesty's 
service.  I  have  the  honor  of  giving  you  his  history  and  of 

Another,  of  173o,  speaks  of  him  as  (50  years  old,  which  would  make  his 
birth  year  1G7.5. 

2  Preserved  in  the  Correspondence  Gent-rale.  So  far  as  I  have  noted,  it 
has  never  been  published. 


JONCAIRE  THE  ELDER 

showing  you  his  character;  you  can  judge  him  for  yourself." 
Raudot  continues: 

lie  is  a  man  who  talks  much,  who  brags,  and  even  lies.  He 
boasts  a  great  deal  of  his  influence  with  the  Scnccas,  and  makes  it 
appear  as  great  as  possible. 

If  an  upright  man,  he  cannot  possess  these  traits;  but  he  adds  to 
them  something  of  ingratitude,  not  refraining  on  every  occasion  to 
show  contempt  for  his  benefactor.  He  thinks  thereby  to  increase 
his  own  importance,  insinuating  by  his  talk  that  it  was  necessary 
to  come  to  him  in  Iroquois  matters ;  but  the  most  reputable  men  think 
differently,  believing  that  if  he  had  not  been  consulted,  affairs  would 
have  gone  better. 

He  has  been  a  soldier  in  this  country,  and  was  taken  captive  by 
the  Scnccas.  As  they  were  fastening  him  to  a  stake,  to  burn  him, 
without  knowing  what  he  did,  he  gave  a  blow  of  his  fist  on  the  nose 
of  one  who  held  him.  It  made  the  savage's  nose  bleed,  averted  the 
tragedy  and  saved  his  life,  since  he  was  soon  adopted,  the  savages 
admiring  a  man  who  dared,  alone,  defend  his  life  among  many 
enemies. 

It  is  from  him,  Monsieur,  that  I  have  drawn  this  history,  which 
seems  to  me  fabulous,  it  being  the  custom  of  the  Indians  to  burn 
people  whom  they  think  brave,  treating  them  more  cruelly  than 
others.  But,  at  any  rate,  he  was  adopted,  remained  with  them, 
gained  their  regard  and  confidence,  and  did  not  return  to  the  colony 
until  we  made  peace  with  these  nations. 

M.  Raudot  continues  with  an  account  of  Joncairc's  subse- 
quent service,  which  will  presently  be  related.  The  passage 
quoted  above  is  the  earliest  known  account  of  Joncairc's  cap- 
tivity, and  was  derived  from  him.  Some  years  later  the  his- 
torian Bacqucvillc  de  La  Potherie  published  a  somewhat  differ- 
ent version : 

He  was  taken  in  a  battle;  the  fierceness  with  which  he  fought  a 
war  chief  who  sought  to  bind  him  in  order  to  burn  his  fingers,  until 
the  death  sentence  could  be  carried  out.  induced  the  others  to  grant 
him  his  life,  his  comrades  having  all  been  burned  at  a  slow  fire. 
They  [the  Iroquois  adopted  him.  and  the  confidence  which  they 
had  in  him  thenceforth,  led  them  to  make  him  their  mediator  in  all 
negot  iat  ions." 

3  La    Potherie    was    a    cnntrmorary    of    Joncuire.    and    Iiis    '' Hinfnirp    c^! 


150  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

This  passage,  which  is  apparently  the  basis  of  versions  of 
the  affair  by  modern  writers,  has  been  variously  "  enlarged 
and  improved " ;  but  it  is  worth  noting  that  the  man  who 
wrote  down  Joncaire's  own  much  simpler  account  in  1709  de- 
clared that  he  did  not  believe  it.  Raudot,  however,  was  just 
then  trying  to  make  a  case  against  Joncaire.  There  is  no 
reason  to  doubt  that  worthy's  captivity,  however  writers  may 
have  decked  it  with  imaginary  incidents.  On  that  captiv- 
ity, and  Joncaire's  subsequent  adoption,  depended  the  course 
of  history  in  Western  New  York  for  half  a  century.  Jon- 
caire passed  much  of  his  subsequent  life  among  the  Senecas, 
and  though  he  won  distinction  for  his  service  to  his  king 
and  the  cause  of  Canada,  he  seems  never  to  have  forfeited  the 
confidence  of  his  red  brethren.  He  did  not,  like  many  pris- 
oners of  the  period,  wholly  sever  his  connection  with  his  own 
people.  On  the  contrary,  his  intimacy  with  the  Senecas  proved 
of  the  greatest  value  to  Canada  in  the  promotion  of  her  plans 
for  trade. 

Whenever  Joncaire  may  have  been  taken  prisoner,  he  was 
released  in  the  autumn  of  1694,  with  twelve  other  prisoners, 
one  of  whom  was  M.  de  Hertel,4  a  French  officer  whose  services 
were  of  some  note  at  a  subsequent  period.  Father  Milet,  who 

L'Amerique  septentrionale,"  published  in  Paris  in  1722,  contains  the  fullest 
early  account  of  Joncaire's  captivity  after  Raudot's  I  have  been  able  to  dis- 
cover. La  Potherie  is  apparently  Parkman's  authority;  yet  I  find  no  other 
basis  than  the  passage  above  quoted  for  the  following,  in  "  Frontenac  and 
New  France  under  Louis  XIV":  "The  history  of  Joncaire  was  a  note- 
worthy one.  The  Senecas  had  captured  him  some  time  before,  tortured  his 
companions  to  death,  and  doomed  him  to  the  same  fate.  As  a  preliminary 
torment,  an  old  chief  tried  to  burn  a  finger  of  the  captive  in  the  bowl  of 
his  pipe,  on  which  Joncaire  knocked  him  down.  If  he  had  begged  for 
mercy,  their  hearts  would  have  been  flint;  but  the  warrior  crowd  were  so 
pleased  with  this  proof  of  courage  that  they  adopted  him  as  one  of  their 
tribe,  and  gave  him  an  Iroquois  wife."  Evidently  the  historian  has  read 
into  the  meager  account  of  La  Potherie  certain  picturesque  —  and  highly 
probable  —  details  drawn  from  his  own  knowledge  of  Indian  customs  and 
character.  As  for  Joncaire's  Indian  wife,  her  existence  is  also  highly 
probable;  but  I  find  only  circumstantial  proof  of  it  in  contemporary  rec- 
ords. 

*  "  Orchoufhf,  ar/T  Irx  Ouiennienx,  ramtne  1-1  enclaves;  enfrp  autm,  M. 
de  Hertel  et  M.  de  Jonrtiire." — Helmont,  "  Hixtoire  du  Canada,"  p.  fU>.  The 
Abbe  de  Belmont  was  Superior  of  the  Seminary  at  Montreal,  1713  to  172i. 
His  MS.  history  is  in  the  Royal  Library  at  Paris. 


JONCAIRE  THE  ELDER  151 

liad  been  held  a  prisoner  among  the  Oneidas  since  1689,  was 
returned  to  the  French  at  the  same  time.  Joncaire  had  then 
lived  among  the  Senccas  for  several  years,  and  had  been  adopted 
by  a  Seneca  family  to  fill  the  place  of  "  a  relative  of  impor- 
tance," whom  they  had  lost.  "  lie  ingratiated  himself  so  much 
with  the  nation,"  says  Golden,  "  that  he  was  advanced  to  the 
rank  of  a  sachem,  and  preserved  their  esteem  to  the  day  of 
his  death ;  whereby  he  became,  after  the  general  peace,  very 
useful  to  the  French  in  all  negotiations  with  the  Five  Na- 
tions, and  to  this  day  they  show  regard  to  his  family  and 
children."  5  There  is  no  implication  here,  nor  in  any  other 
writer  who  may  be  called  contemporary  with  Joncaire,  that 
he  married  a  Seneca  woman.  On  March  1,  1706,  at  Montreal, 
he  married  Madelaine  le  Guay,  by  whom,  from  1707  to  1723, 
he  had  ten  children,0  several  of  whom  died  in  infancy,  and  but 
two  of  whom  came  to  bear  a  part  in  their  country's  history. 
The  eldest  child,  Philippe  Thomas  dc  Joncaire,  born  January 
9,  1707,  is  known  by  his  father's  title,  Chabcrt,  and  by  many 
writers  the  two  are  more  or  less  confused.7  The  seventh  child, 
Daniel,  "  Sieur  de  Chabert  et  Clausonne,"  sometimes  called 
Clausonne,  was  born  in  1716.  Both  of  these  sons  followed  in 
their  father's  footsteps,  and  for  many  years  are  conspicuous 
figures  in  the  history  of  the  Niagara  region. 

The  first  public  service  in  which  we  find  the  senior  Joncaire 
employed  was  not  until  six  years  after  his  release  by  the  Iro- 
quois.  He  was  at  the  conference  in  Montreal,  July  18,  1700, 
between  the  Chevalier  de  Callieres  and  six  deputies  from  the 
Iroquois,  two  from  the  Onondagas  and  four  from  the  Senecas. 

s  Colden's  "History  of  tlio  rive  Indian  Nations  of  Canada"  (London, 
1717),  p.  179. 

0  Tanpuny,  "  Dictinniifiirc  ffi'nrolnrjiqup."  The  following  data  nre  jriven 
repardinp  Juncture's  children:  Philippe  Thomas,  h.  Jan.  9.  1707;  Madelaine, 
h.  May  8,  170S,  d.  1709;  Jean  IViptistc,  h.  Aup.  -V>,  17(19,  d.  1709;  Louis 
Komain,  b.  N'ov.  18,  1710;  Marie  Madelaine.  h.  April,  ITU1,  d.  171-J;  Louis 
Marie,  b.  Oet.  JS,  171,5;  Daniel,  h.  17H!;  Madelaine  Therese.  b.  Mareh  ::?. 
1717;  Louis  Marie,  b.  Auir.  .»,  1710;  Francois,  b.  June  JO,  17-.?:?.  The  family 
hoine  seems  always  to  have  been  at  or  near  Montreal.  Madame  de  Joneaire, 
mother  of  these  children,  is  buried  in  the  church  at  Hepentiirnv. 

"In  Parkman's  "Half  Century  of  Conflict."  Joncaire  and  his  oldest  son 
are  spoken  of  as  the  same  person,  and  no  distinction  is  made  between  them  in 
the  index. 


152      AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

Pledges  of  peace  were  made  in  the  figurative  language  em- 
plo3red  on  such  occasions.  Callieres  was  solicitous  about  cer- 
tain Frenchmen  and  Indian  allies  of  the  French  who  were  still 
held  in  the  Iroquois  country.  The  deputies  declared  their 
willingness  to  restore  them,  and  asked  as  a  special  favor  that 
Joncaire  return  with  them,  to  fetch  out  the  captives.  This 
request  was  granted,  Father  Bruyas  and  the  Sieur  de  Mari- 
court  being  also  sent  along,  the  two  former  to  the  Onondagas, 
Joncaire  to  the  Senecas.  "  Our  son  Joncaire,"  the  chiefs 
called  him ;  and  before  the  council  broke  up,  they  solemnly  gave 
to  Callieres  three  strings  of  wampum.  *'  We  give  these,"  they 
said,  "  in  consequence  of  the  death  of  Joncaire's  father,  who 
managed  affairs  well,  and  was  in  favor  of  peace.  We  inform 
Onontio,  by  these  strings  of  wampum,  that  we  have  selected 
Tonatakout,  the  nearest  blood  relation,  to  act  as  his  father 
instead,  as  he  resembles  [him]  in  his  disposition  of  a  kind 
parent."  We  are  to  understand  that  this  father  who  had  died 
was  the  adoptive  father,  according  to  the  Seneca  custom.  The 
Governor  expressed  sympathy ;  approved  the  appointment  of 
the  new  father ;  and  gave  the  Senecas  a  belt  "  in  token  of  my 
sharing  your  sentiments ;  and  I  consent  that  Sieur  Joncaire 
act  as  envoy  to  convey  my  word  to  you  and  to  bring  me  back 
yours."  This  so  pleased  the  chiefs  that  they  consented  that 
four  of  their  people  should  remain  at  Montreal  until  their  re- 
turn. 

Callieres  at  this  period  was  more  concerned  in  making  a 
firm  peace  with  the  savages  south  of  Lake  Ontario  than  with 
getting  any  foothold  on  the  Niagara.  In  fact,  for  the  time, 
he  avoided  any  movement  in  that  direction.  The  next  spring, 
when  he  sent  La  Mothe-Cadillac  and  Alphonse  de  Tonty  to 
make  their  establishment  at  Detroit,  he  had  them  follow  the 
old  Ottawa  route,  "  by  that  means,"  he  announced  beforehand 
to  Pontchartrain,  "  avoiding  the  Niagara  passage  so  as  not 
to  give  umbrage  to  the  Iroquois,  through  fear  of  disturbing  the 
peace,  until  I  can  speak  to  them  to  prevent  any  alarm  they 
might  feel  at  such  proceedings,  and  until  I  adopt  some  meas- 
ures to  facilitate  the  communication  and  conveyance  of  neces- 

8X.  Y.  Col.  Docs.,  IX,  711. 


JONCAIRE  THE  ELDER  153 

saries  from  this  to  that  country  through  Lake  Ontario."  Cal- 
lieres  knew  that  the  Minister  hud  very  much  at  heart  the  suc- 
cess of  the  project  on  the  Detroit;  it  was  not  politic  to  urge 
at  the  moment  the  advantages  to  be  gained  from  a  hazardous 
experiment  on  the  Niagara.  The  band  that  built  Fort  Pon- 
chartrain,  thereby  laying  the  foundations  for  the  city  of  De- 
troit, went  thither  by  the  Ottawa  route;  and  although  there 
was  an  occasional  passage  by  way  of  the  Niagara  —  a  few  of 
which  we  can  trace,  more  or  which,  no  doubt,  we  arc  ignorant  of 
-  yet  for  some  years  from  the  time  we  are  now  considering, 
the  principal  coming  and  going  between  the  Upper  Lakes  and 
the  lower  St.  Lawrence  was  by  the  northern  route. 

Joncaire  spent  the  summer  of  1700  among  the  Senecas  in 
the  furtherance  of  his  mission.  There  were  no  permanent 
Seneca  villages  at  this  time  west  of  the  Gcncsee.  By  Septem- 
ber 3d  he  was  back  again  at  Montreal,  with  Father  Bruyas  and 
Maricourt  from  the  Onondagas,  nineteen  "  deputies  "  of  the 
Iroquois  and  thirteen  prisoners  for  restoration  to  the  French. 
Joncaire  had  found  no  little  trouble  in  inducing  them  to  re- 
turn. Many  a  French  soldier  was  brought  by  the  fierce  Sen- 
ecas a  trembling,  fainting  captive  into  their  lodges,  only  to  be 
adopted  as  one  of  the  nation.  An  alliance  with  a  young  squaw, 
by  no  means  always  uncomely,  quickly  followed.  The  rigors 
and  discomforts  of  the  frontier  post  and  wilderness  campaign 
prepared  him  to  accept  with  philosophy  if  not  with  entire 
satisfaction,  the  filth  and  rudeness  of  savage  life.  In  the  mat- 
ters of  cruelty  and  barbarity,  the  French  soldier  of  the  period 
was  too  often  the  equal  to  his  Indian  brother.  The  freedom 
of  the  forest  life  always  appealed  to  the  Gallic  blood.  There 
was  adventure,  there  was  license,  there  were  often  case  and 
abundance  among  his  savage  captors.  If  at  times  there  were 
distress  and  danger,  these,  too,  he  had  known  in  the  King's 
service.  Small  wonder,  then,  that  among  such  captives  as 
saved  their  scalps  by  reason  of  some  exhibition  of  a  dauntless 
spirit,  there  were  many  who  preferred  to  abide  with  the  red 
men,  in  their  villages  pleasantly  seated  in  the  beautiful  valleys 
of  Central  New  York,  to  a  return  to  the  duties  and  privations 
of  service  in  Canada.  Once  more  among  the  French,  they  knew 


154  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

they  need  never  look  for  mercy  again  from  the  Iroquois  into 
whose  hands  they  were  ever  likely  to  fall.  Their  point  of  view 
must  have  been  entirely  familiar  to  Joncaire;  though  on  this 
and  subsequent  occasions  he  seems  faithfully  to  have  sought  to 
induce  them  to  return. 

The  matter  of  Indian  wives,  which  hardly  calls  for  our 
further  consideration  save  in  relation  to  the  family  of  Jon- 
caire, did  receive  at  one  time  and  another,  a  good  deal  of  at- 
tention from  the  Canadian  Governors.  Officially  Canada  al- 
ways opposed  these  alliances,  as  did  the  Church.  Actually, 
they  occurred  with  great  frequency  wherever  the  two  races 
were  thrown  into  such  social  intimacy  as  pertained  to  the  fron- 
tier and  the  wilderness.  Frontenac  himself  was  said  to  have 
had  half-breed  descendants,  of  whom  were  the  prominent  fam- 
ily of  Montour;  but  this  statement,  much  repeated  by  writers, 
is  apocryphal.  Vaudreuil,  in  1706,  issued  an  order  forbidding 
Cadillac  to  let  his  men  in  the  Detroit  settlement  take  Indian 
wives  because  "  experience  showed  they  became  good-for-noth- 
ings and  their  children  the  same."  A  report  of  1709  says  of 
Vaudreuil :  "  He  has  had  to  order  Joncaire  to  get  rid  of  one 
Montour,  who  springs  from  such  a  marriage.  It  appears  that 
all  children  born  of  it  make  all  the  trouble  possible  for  the 
French." 

Whatever  may  have  been  Joncaire's  course,  he  kept  a  singu- 
larly strong  hold  on  the  affections  of  the  Senecas.  With  the 
party  that  went  up  to  Montreal  in  September,  the  Senecas 
sent  along  a  young  man.  "  When  Joncaire  was  in  our  coun- 
try," said  one  of  their  spokesmen  to  the  Governor,  "  the  father 
of  this  youth  whom  we  restore,  was  his  master ;  but  now  it  is 
Joncaire  who  is  master  of  this  young  man.  We  give  him  in 
order  that  if  Joncaire  should  happen  to  die,  he  may  be  regarded 
as  his  nephew  and  may  take  his  place.  Therefore  it  is  that 
we  give  him  up  to  Onontio,  whom  we  beg,  with  the  Intendant, 
to  take  care  of  him  and  to  confine  him  should  he  become  wild." 
And  Callieres,  as  in  duty  bound,  promised  to  care  for  the  youth, 
and  to  "  furnish  him  everything  he  shall  require  to  qualify  him 
for  filling  some  day  said  Sieur  Joncaire's  place." 

For   some  years   following  Joncaire  was  much  employed  on 


JONCAIHE  THE  ELDER  155 

missions  of  this  sort;  now  sojourning  among  the  Onondagas 
or  the  Scnccas,  to  secure  the  release  of  prisoners  or  to  spy 
on  the  emissaries  of  the  English ;  now  back  at  Montreal,  inter- 
preting at  councils.  In  the  negotiations  of  the  time  he  was 
indispensable. 

At  the  general  council  at  Montreal  in  the  summer  of  1701, 
at  which  assembled  not  only  representatives  of  the  Iroquois, 
but  the  tribes  from  Mackinac  and  the  West,  Joncaire  found 
himself  for  the  time  being  in  an  embarrassing  position.  The 
western  tribes,  after  great  difficulty,  had  been  induced  to  send 
hither  the  French  and  Iroquois  prisoners,  for  exchange.  Here 
appeared  the  Rat,  that  greatest  and  most  eloquent  red  man 
of  his  day,  of  whose  eloquence,  intelligence  and  nobility  of  char- 
acter many  writers  from  La  Potherie  to  Parkman  have  testi- 
fied. The  Rat  handed  over  to  Callieres  his  Iroquois  prisoners, 
and  demanded  to  know  why  the  Five  Nations  were  not  deliv- 
ering up  theirs  ;  they  were  not  acting  in  good  faith,  he  said. 
The  Iroquois  replied,  through  their  orator  Teganeout,  that 
their  young  men  had  charge  of  the  prisoners,  and  that  the  lat- 
ter were  unwilling  to  leave  the  lodges  where  they  had  lived  since 
childhood ;  were  they  French  or  Western  Indian,  it  mattered 
not ;  they  had  forgotten  their  own  people  and  were  attached  to 
those  who  had  adopted  them,  significantly  adding  that  Joncaire 
had  not  very  strongly  urged  their  return. 

Joncaire  arose  in  the  council,  acknowledged  his  fault,  and 
begged  the  Senecas,  his  brethren,  to  help  him  accomplish  the 
matter  hereafter.  High  words  followed,  but  later  reconcilia- 
tion was  effected. 

A  few  days  afterward,  the  council  being  still  in  session,  the 
Rat  died.  In  the  obsequies  that  followed,  Joncaire  was  singu- 
larly conspicuous.  The  body  of  the  great  Huron  chief  lay  in 
state  at  the  Hotel  Dieu,  in  an  officer's  uniform,  with  side  arms, 
for  he  held  the  rank  and  pay  of  an  officer  in  the  French  army.9 
After  the  Governor  General  and  Intendant  had  sprinkled  the 
corpse  with  holy  water,  Joncaire  led  sixty  warriors  from  Sault 
St.  Louis  to  the  bier,  where  they  wept  for  the  dead,  bewail- 
ing him  in  Indian  fashion  and  "  covered  him,"  which  figurative 

9  Charlevoix,  Shea's  eel.,   V,  1-V7. 


156      AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

expression  signifies  that  they  gave  presents  to  his  tribesmen. 
After  the  imposing  funeral,  at  which  the  ritual  of  the  Roman 
Catholic  church  was  blended  with  military  usage  and  Indian 
rites,  Joncaire  led  another  band  of  Iroquois  to  condole  with 
and  compliment  the  Hurons,  with  significant  gifts  of  wam- 
pum. 

In  these  acts  Joncaire  was  undoubtedly  at  work,  not  only  for 
his  Government,  but  for  the  Senecas  and  his  own  interests, 
which  from  now  on  center  more  and  more  on  the  western 
boundary  of  the  Five  Nations  cantons.  French  interests  on  the 
Niagara  wTere  not  to  be  jeopardized  by  a  needless  rupture  with 
the  Hurons. 

At  a  council  at  Onondaga,  in  September,  1701,  Joncaire  en- 
countered Captain  Johannes  Bleecker  and  David  Schuyler,  sent 
out  from  Fort  Orange,  as  their  report  has  it,  "  to  hinder  the 
French  debauching  of  our  Indians."  The  English  reports  of 
these  transactions  are  less  formal  and  correct  than  are  those 
of  the  French ;  but  their  vigorous  phraseology,  heightened  by 
the  ignorant  or  whimsical  spelling  of  the  time,  adds  a  reality 
and  picturesqueness  to  the  chronicle  which  the  Paris  docu- 
ments lack.  Joncaire  had  brought  an  abundance  of  the  goods 
which  the  Indian  craved,  a  part  at  least  of  the  store  intended 
for  the  families  who  consented  to  release  their  prisoners  in 
exchange.  Captain  Bleecker  and  his  companion  were  irritated 
at  the  success  which  Joncaire  and  his  fellows  had  among  "  our 
Indians."  "  We  understand,"  said  Bleecker,  "  the  French  arc- 
come  here  to  trade.  Do  you  send  for  us  to  come  with  such 
people,  if  you  send  for  us  for  every  Frenchman  that  comes 
to  trade  with  you,  wee  shall  have  work  enough  and  if  you  will 
hearken  to  them  they  will  keep  you  in  alarm  Continually  we 
know  this  is  the  contrivance  of  the  Priests  to  plague  you  Con- 
tinually upon  pretense  of  Peace  and  talk  [to]  }TOU  until  you 
are  Mad,  and  as  soon  as  these  are  gott  home,  the  Jesuits  have 
another  project  if  you  will  break  your  Cranes  [craniums?] 
with  such  things;  we  advise  you  brethren  when  the  French 
comes  again,  lett  them  smoak  their  pipe  and  give  them  their 
bellyfull  of  Victualls  and  lett  them  goe." 

The  Dutch  emissaries  of  the  English  on  this  occasion  heard 


JONCAIRE  THE  ELDER  157 

Joncairc  take  the  Indians  roundly  to  task  because  they  prom- 
ised more  than  they  performed  in  the  matter  of  returning  pris- 
oners. He  spoke  as  one  who  had  nothing  to  fear,  and  conse- 
quently his  words  had  weight.  After  some  days  of  it, 
"  Monsieur  Jonkeur  went  his  waycs,"  says  the  English  record, 
and  the  Dutchmen  went  back  to  Albany,  their  chief  concern  be- 
ing, as  from  the  first,  to  secure  the  trade  of  the  Five  Nations  to 
themselves.  Their  plans  for  that  trade,  even  at  this  period, 
involved  the  control  of  the  Niagara  River. 

From  further  worry  over  the  friendship  of  the  Iroquois, 
Callieres  was  spared  by  death,  May  26,  1703;  and  a  new  and 
stronger  Onontio  took  his  place  at  the  head  of  the  adminis- 
tration in  Canada.  This  was  the  Chevalier  dc  Vaudreuil,  whose 
part  in  the  history  of  our  region  is  to  continue  important  for 
many  years. 

Like  his  predecessor,  he  had  had  experience  with  the  Seneca 
in  his  native  wilds.  As  we  have  seen,  Vaudreuil  had  come 
out  from  France  just  in  time  to  join  Denonville's  expedition 
of  1687.  He  shared  in  that  inglorious  campaign,  coming  to 
the  Niagara  at  its  close,  and  helped  to  build  the  fort  which 
•was  destined  to  be  the  scene  of  one  of  the  most  tragic  episodes 
in  the  history  of  French  occupancy  in  America.  Vaudreuil's 
personal  knowledge  of  the  Niagara  pass  had  no  doubt  its  in- 
fluence in  shaping  his  policy  towards  the  Iroquois.  In  a  let- 
ter to  the  Minister,  Pontchartrain,  November  14,  1703,  his  first 
communication  after  the  death  of  Callieres,  he  speaks  of  Jon- 
caire's  recent  return  from  a  three  months'  sojourn  among  the 
Senccas,  and  declares  the  intention  of  sending  him  back  to  win- 
ter among  them.  This  he  did,  but  at  the  first  breaking  up  of 
the  ice  in  the  spring,  Joncaire  appeared  at  Fort  Frontenac 
with  the  news  that  the  English  were  preparing  to  hold  a  gen- 
eral meeting  of  the  Iroquois  at  Onondaga. 

The  neutrality  of  the  Five  Nations  had  now  become  the 
chief  object  of  solicitude  for  the  French.  Joncaire  was  sperd- 
ily  sent  back  to  the  Senecas,  and  with  him  the  priest  Vaillant, 
that,  their  combined  elTorts  might  defeat  the  seductive  over- 
tures of  the  English.  Once  more  at  Onondaga,  the  great  capi- 
tal of  the  Iroquois,  he  mut  his  old  adversary,  Peter  Schuvlor. 


158  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

The  Indians  were  as  ready  to  listen  to  overtures  from  one  party 
as  the  other.  This  attitude  alarmed  the  French.  Joncaire 
posted  off  to  Quebec  to  inform  Vaudreuil,  and  was  sent  back 
with  messages  to  Ramezay,  at  Montreal. 

Under  the  sanction  of  the  French  at  this  time  Indian  par- 
ties fell  upon  certain  New  England  settlements  with  dire  re- 
sults. We  must  accord  to  Joncaire  a  share  in  the  instiga- 
tion of  these  attacks.  He  was  also  an  intermediary  in  nego- 
tiations with  the  Senecas,  regarding  an  attack  upon  them  by 
the  Ottawas ;  we  find  him  writing  to  the  Governor,  from  the 
Seneca  capital,  under  date  of  July  7,  1705,  that  "  the  partisans 
of  the  English  in  these  villages  do  all  in  their  power  to  induce 
the  young  men  to  avenge  the  attack  made  by  Outtaouais  on 
them,  and  that  they  are  restrained  only  by  the  hope  of  recover- 
ing their  prisoners,  and  by  the  proceedings  they  have  seen  me 
adopt." 

The  King  and  his  Ministers  at  Versailles  came  to  have  great 
interest  in  the  peculiar  services  rendered  by  Joncaire.  "  His 
Majesty,"  wrote  Pontchartrain  to  Vaudreuil,  June  9,  1706, 
"  approves  your  sending  Sieur  Jonqueres  to  the  Iroquois,  be- 
cause he  is  esteemed  by  them  and  has  not  the  reputation  of  a 
Trader.  ...  I  have  no  doubt  of  the  truth  of  the  information 
Sieur  Jonquieres  has  given  you  respecting  the  intrigues  of 
the  English  among  the  Iroquois.  Continue  to  order  him  to 
occupy  himself  with  breaking  them  up,  and  on  your  part,  give 
the  subject  all  the  attention  it  deserves." 

There  is  among  the  Paris  Documents  10  of  the  year  1706, 
a  paper  entitled:  "Proposals  to  be  submitted  to  the  Court 
that  it  may  understand  the  importance  of  taking  possession 
of  Niagara  at  the  earliest  date,  and  of  anticipating  the  Eng- 
lish who  design  to  do  so,"  etc.  It  is  unsigned.  It  does  not 
appear  to  have  been  written  either  by  Vaudreuil  or  the  In- 
tendant,  though  it  was  probably  by  the  order  of  the  former 
that  it  was  sent  to  Versailles.  It  shows  that  now,  seventeen 
years  after  the  abandonment  of  Denonville's  enterprise,  the 
expediency  of  again  attempting  a  permanent  establishment 
on  the  Niagara  was  being  considered.  It  is  worth  while  to 

10  X.  Y.  Col.  Docs.,  IX,  773-775. 


JONCAIRE  THE  ELDER  159 

note  the  principal  points  in  favor  of  the  proposition,  as  they 
were  drafted  for  the  edification  of  the  King. 

Niagara  was  claimed  to  be  the  best  of  all  points  for  trade 
with  the  Iroquois.  It  would  serve  as  an  entrepot  to  the  es- 
tablishment at  Detroit.  With  a  bark  on  Lake  Ontario,  goods 
could  be  brought  from  Fort  Frontenac  to  the  Niagara  in  a 
couple  of  days,  thus  effecting  a  great  saving  in  time,  with 
less  risk  of  loss,  than  by  the  existing  canoe  transportation. 
"  It  is  to  be  considered,"  argues  this  document,  "  that  by  this 
establishment  we  should  have  a  fortress  among  the  Iroquois 
which  would  keep  them  in  check ;  a  refuge  for  our  Indian 
allies  in  case  of  need,  and  a  barrier  that  would  prevent  them 
going  to  trade  with  the  English,  as  they  begin  to  do  this  year, 
it  being  the  place  at  which  they  cross." 

The  foregoing  statement  fixes,  if  not  exactly  the  date  at 
which  traders  in  the  English  interest  made  themselves  a  fac- 
tor on  the  Niagara,  at  any  rate  the  date  when  the  French 
began  to  think  they  had,  and  seriously  to  fear  them.  In  this 
crisis,  they  turned  to  Joncaire,  whom  the  writer  of  these 
"  Proposals  "  cites  as  "  an  officer  of  the  Marine  forces  in  Can- 
ada, who  has  acquired  such  credit  among  the  Iroquois,  that 
they  have  repeatedly  proposed  and  actually  do  suggest  to 
him,  to  establish  himself  among  them,  granting  him  liberty 
to  select  on  their  territory  the  place  most  acceptable  to  him- 
self, for  the  purpose  of  living  there  in  peace,  and  even  to 
remove  their  villages  to  the  neighborhood  of  his  residence,  in 
order  to  protect  him  against  their  common  enemies."  This 
was  no  doubt  true,  and  goes  far  to  show  how  closely  affiliated 
with  the  Senecas  Joncaire  had  now  become.  But  the  proposi- 
tion that  follows  is  a  singularly  guileless  and  child-like  speci- 
men of  statecraft. 

It  was  urged  that  the  English  would  take  no  alarm  if  this 
good  friend  of  the  Senecas,  this  soldier  who  lived  with  the 
Indians  in  their  lodges,  should  go  to  the  banks  of  the  Niagara 
"  without  noise,  going  there  as  a  private  individual  intending 
simply  to  form  an  establishment  for  his  family,  at  first  bring- 
ing only  the  men  he  will  require  to  erect  and  fortify  his  dwell- 
ing, and  afterwards  on  pretence  of  conveying  supplies  and 


160  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

merchandise  there,  increasing  their  number  insensibly,  and 
when  the  Iroquois  would  see  that  goods  would  be  furnished 
them  at  a  reasonable  rate,  far  from  insulting  us,  they  would 
protect  and  respect  us,  having  no  better  friends  than  those 
who  supply  them  at  a  low  rate."  The  document  goes  on  to 
show  how  a  monopoly  of  the  beaver  trade  at  Niagara  may  be 
secured,  and  to  discuss  the  necessity  of  underselling  the  Eng- 
lish, a  thing  which  the  French  at  this  period  could  not  do, 
especially  in  the  price  of  powder  and  lead,  which  the  English 
furnished  very  cheaply  to  the  Indians. 

It  is  suggested  in  the  "  Proposals  "  that  the  King  "  grant 
ten  or  twelve  thousand  weight  of  gunpowder  and  twenty  or 
thirty  thousand  weight  of  lead,  which  would  be  yearly  reim- 
bursed to  him  at  the  rate  his  Majesty  purchases  it  from  the 
contractor.  This  would  counterbalance  the  price  of  the  Eng- 
lish article;  and  then  as  our  powder  is  better,  we  would  thereby 
obtain  the  preference ;  become  masters  of  the  trade  and  main- 
tain ourselves  at  peace;  for  it  cannot  be  doubted  that  those 
who  will  be  masters  of  the  trade  will  be  also  masters  of  the  In- 
dians, and  that  these  can  be  gained  only  in  this  way." 

All  of  this  was  to  be  accomplished  by  Joncaire's  clandestine 
establishment  at  Niagara.  The  King  was  reminded,  somewhat 
presumptuously,  that  the  Niagara  enterprise,  on  a  liberal 
scale,  "  would  be  of  much  greater  advantage  and  less  expense 
than  carrying  on  a  war  against  Indians  excited  by  the  Eng- 
lish." Though  obviously  true,  this  was  hardly  the  way  in 
which  to  win  favor  with  the  war-racked  Louis.  The  "  Pro- 
posals "  conclude  as  follows : 

After  having  exposed  the  necessity  of  the  establishment  of  this 
post;  the  means  of  effecting  it  without  affording  any  umbrage  to 
the  Iroquois,  and  the  most  certain  means  to  maintain  peace  and 
union  with  the  Indians,,  it  remains  for  me  to  add,  as  respects  the 
management  of  this  enterprise,  that  it  would  be  necessary  to  pre- 
vent all  the  improper  Commerce  hitherto  carried  on,  by  the  trans- 
portation of  Brandy  into  the  forest,  which  has  been  the  cause  of 
all  existing  disorders  and  evils.  In  order  to  avoid  these  it  would 
be  proper,  that  the  Court,  had  it  no  other  views,  should  give  the 
charge  of  this  business  to  our  Governor  and  Intendant  who  in  order 


JONCAIRE  THE  ELDER  161 

to  maintain  the  King's  authority  in  Canada  and  to  labor  in  concert 
for  the  public  peace,  would  always  so  cooperate  that  the  whole  would 
be  accomplished  in  a  manner  profitable  to  religion,  trade  and  the 
union  with  the  Indians,  which  are  the  three  objects  of  this  estab- 
lishment. 

There  is  in  this  a  suggestion  of  priestly  authorship.  The 
whole  document  smacks  more  of  the  clerical  theorist  than  of 
the  soldier,  the  trader  or  the  practical  administrator  of  af- 
fairs. Its  recommendations  were  not  followed,  though  it  had 
its  effect,  along  with  other  causes,  in  bringing  about  an  in- 
vestigation into  the  state  of  affairs,  not  only  on  the  Niagara, 
but  at  other  points  of  trade  on  the  Lakes. 

In  1707  Joncairc  was  sent  farther  afield,  on  a  mission  among 
the  Illinois.  When  complaint  was  made  of  his  conduct  by 
one  Riverin,  the  Minister  wrote  back  that  the  accusation 
against  Joncaire  was  false,  and  that  Riverin  himself  was  not 
above  joining  in  cabals.  No  further  hint  is  found  of  the  na- 
ture of  the  affair.  A  promise,  in  this  year,  that  Joncaire 
should  have  promotion,11  bespeaks  a  continuance  of  official 
confidence  in  him.  To  Joncaire  himself  the  Minister  wrote: 
"  I  have  received  your  letter  of  September  3d  of  last  year.  M. 
de  Vaudreuil  informs  me  of  what  you  have  done  among  the 
Iroquois  in  the  journeys  you  have  made  by  his  order,  and  I  am 
satisfied  with  your  conduct.  Continue  punctually  to  execute 
the  orders  of  M.  dc  Vaudreuil  and  I  will  remind  the  King  of 
your  services ;  but  at  present  there  is  no  vacancy  in  the 
Canadian  troops." 

A  document  of  the  time  of  singular  interest,  is  a  letter  from 
the  Minister,  Pontchartrain,  to  La  Mothe-Cadillac,  in  which, 
replying  to  a  proposal  of  the  latter  to  connect  Lakes  Erie  and 
Ontario  by  a  canal,  it  is  remarked:  "It  does  not  seem  to  me 
that  we  can  at  present  undertake  the  junction  of  the  Lake  On- 
tario with  Lake  Erie  by  a  canal,  as  you  propose,  because  of 
the  expense.  However,  send  me  an  analyzed  statement  ("  mi 
me  moire  r(iinsomie  "),  with  a  plan  and  estimate  of  cost/' 

11  The  Minister  to  do   Vaudreuil,  June   l:i,  1707;  same  to  Joncaire,  June 
30,  1707. 

12  The  Minister  to  Cadillac,  June  'M,  1707. 


162  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

As  early  as  August,  1705,  we  find  the  English  complaining  of 
"  Jonkeur    the   French    interpreter   who   lives    in    the    Senekas 
country."     As  he  first  went  to  the  Senecas  in  the  winter  of 
1704,  his  advent  on  the  Niagara  was  probably  about  that  time. 
From  that  time  also,  date  the  references,  in  both  French  and 
English  records,  to  trade  on  the  Niagara.     It  was  in  a  sense 
a  renewal   of   the  earlier   occupancy   which  had   ended   so   la- 
mentably with  the  abandonment  of  Fort  Denonville.     French 
occupancy  of  the  region  then  ceased,  nor  was  it  resumed  for 
30  years ;  but  in  that  period  there  was  probably  never  a  season 
when  some  attempt  at  trade  on  the  river  or  at  its  mouth,  was 
not  made  by  the  French.     A  few  of  these  attempts,  sometimes 
disastrous,  are  noted  in  our  narrative.      It  was  the  presence  of 
Joncaire,  or  of  traders  who   relied   on  his  influence  with  the 
Indians,  that  drew  to  the  vicinity  in  1707  bands  of  those  un- 
certain nomads  whom  we  vaguely  know  as  Mississagas.     Their 
later   occupancy   of   the  Niagara   region   is   less   definite   than 
that    of   the    Senecas.     They   were   probably    the   people   who 
had  greeted  La  Salle  in  1678;  and  seem  to  have  shifted  about 
in  the  region  east  of  Lake  Huron  and  north  of  Lake  Erie,  as 
conditions   of  sustenance  or  warfare  suggested ;  but  in  1707 
word  was  carried  to  Albany  that  two  sachems  of  a  western  na- 
tion "  called  Wississachoos  " —  which  is  held  to  mean  the  same 
as   Mississagas  — "  were   come  to   the   Senecas   country  &   ac- 
quainted the  5  Nations,  that  there  were  Three  Castles  of  their 
Countrymen   come  to   settle   at   a  place   about  8   Miles   above 
Jagare,"  13    that    is,    Niagara.     The    reference   is   not    to    the 
falls,  but  to  the  mouth  of  the  river,  and  the  proposed  settle- 
ment appears  to  have  been  what  was  later  known  as  the  Missis- 
saga  village  near  Chippewa  Creek. 

The  English  had  frequent  reports  not  only  of  the  deeds  but 
of  the  designs  of  the  French  in  the  Niagara  region.  The  New 
York  Indian  records  14  often  contain  entries  that  read  as 

13  X.   Y.   Indian   Records,   Wraxall's   Abridgment. 

i*  By  "New  York  Indian  Records"  I  mean  specifically  the  manuscripts 
so  styled,  being  records  of  transactions  of  Xew  York's  Indian  Commis- 
sioners and  the  Indians  from  IfiTR  to  1751.  In  17.51,  Peter  Wraxall  wrote 
an  abridgment  of  a  part  of  these  records,  which  was  preserved  in  four  folio 
manuscript  volumes.  The  fire  in  the  Capitol  at  Albany,  in  1911,  destroyed 


JONCAIRE  THE  ELDER  163 

though  the  French  had  not  merely  a  trading-post  but  a  fort 
even,  on  the  river,  some  years  before  Joncaire  actually  built 
there.  These  reports  no  doubt  arose  from  the  temporary  so- 
journs which  traders  made,  in  a  neighborhood  so  favorable  for 
their  purpose.  In  May,  1708,  word  reached  Albany  that  the 
French  were  about  to  build  "  at  Oghjagere  or  the  Great 
Falls."  15  In  July  of  1708  the  English  were  warned  against 
"  a  fort  at  Ochjajare."  1G  A  truer  revelation  of  what  the 
French  were  actually  doing  is  found  in  an  Indian  complaint, 
July  5,  1715,  "  that  there  are  some  evil  designs  intended  by  the 
French,  who  keep  a  party  of  men  at  the  Carrying  Place  of 
Jagarc."  1T  Such  records,  many  of  which  might  be  cited,  suf- 
ficiently establish  the  presence  of  French  traders  on  the 
Niagara,  some  years  prior  to  the  time  when  Joncaire  built 
Ins  trading-post. 

Louis  XIV  was  by  no  means  satisfied  with  the  informa- 
tion he  received  through  regular  channels  regarding  the  con- 
dition and  prospects  of  the  lake  posts.  He  accordingly  de- 
vised a  plan  for  a  fuller  and  more  trustworthy  report.  Un- 
der date  of  June  30,  1707,  instructions  were  sent  from  Ver- 
sailles to  M.  de  Clerambaut  d'Aigremont  at  Quebec,  imposing 
upon  him  a  task  which  called  for  no  little  perspicacity  and 
tact.  This  gentleman,  who  was  serving  as  sub-delegate  to  the 
Intendant,  the  Sieur  Baudot,  was  directed  to  visit  Fort  Cata- 
racouy  (i.  c.,  Frontenac,  now  Kingston,  Ont.),  Niagara,  De- 
troit and  Missilimackinuc,  "  to  verify  their  present  condition, 
the  trade  carried  on  there  and  the  utility  they  may  be  to  the 
Colony  of  Canada.''  The  letter  of  instructions  was  long  and 
explicit  on  many  delicate  matters  regarding  which  the  King 
wanted  light.  The  administration  of  La  Mothe-Cadillae  at 
Detroit  was  especially  to  be  inquired  into,  as  many  complaints 

them.  Fortunately,  they  had  been  copied,  for  Professor  Charles  II. 
Mellwain  of  Harvard  University,  who  in  IPl.j  published  them,  with  a 
scholarly  introduction  and  many  useful  notes,  under  the  title  "  An  Abridg- 
ment of  the  Indian  Affairs,"  etc.  In  view  of  the  destruction  of  Wraxall's 
MSS.,  citations  from  them  in  my  narrative  are  referred  to  Profc>sor 
Mellwain's  printed  volume. 

i"'  Mellwain's   "  Wraxall,"  3-1. 

i"  II,.,  :>7. 

i~  Ib.,  105. 


164  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

and  contradictory  reports  had  reached  the  Court.     Of  Niagara 
the  letter  of  instructions  said : 

His  Majesty  is  informed  that  the  English  are  endeavoring  to  seize 
the  post  at  Niagara,  and  that  it  is  of  very  great  importance  for  the. 
preservation  of  Canada  to  prevent  them  so  doing,  because  were  they 
masters  of  it,  they  would  bar  the  passage  and  obstruct  the  com- 
munication with  the  Indian  allies  of  the  French,  whom  as  well  as 
the  Iroquois  they  would  attract  to  them  by  their  trade,  and  dispose, 
whenever  they  please,  to  wage  war  on  the  French.  This  would 
desolate  Canada  and  oblige  us  to  abandon  it. 

It  is  alleged  that  this  post  of  Niagara  could  serve  as  an  entrepot 
to  the  establishment  at  Detroit,  and  facilitate  intercourse  with  it  by 
means  of  a  bark  on  Lake  Ontario;  that  in  fine,  such  a  post  is  of 
infinite  importance  for  the  maintenance  of  the  Colony  of  Canada, 
and  that  it  can  be  accomplished  by  means  of  Sieur  de  Joncaire  whom 
M.  de  Vaudreuil  keeps  among  the  Iroquois.  His  Majesty  desires 
Sieur  d'Aigremont  to  examine  on  the  spot  whether  the  project  be 
of  as  great  importance  for  that  colony  as  is  pretended,  and,  in  such 
case,  to  inquire  with  said  Sieur  de  Joncaire,  whether  it  would  be 
possible  to  obtain  the  consent  of  the  Iroquois  to  have  a  fort  and 
garrison  there,  and  conjointly,  make  a  very  detailed  report  of  the 
means  which  would  be  necessary  to  be  used  to  effect  it,  and  of  the 
expense  it  would  require;  finally  to  ascertain  whether  it  would  be 
desirable  that  he  should  have  an  interview  with  said  Sieur  Joncaire, 
and  that  they  should  have  a  meeting  at  Niagara. 

Word  had  reached  Louis,  which  he  was  loth  to  accept,  that 
Vaudreuil  kept  Joncaire  among  the  Iroquois  for  the  purpose 
of  carrying  on  profitable  trade  with  them,  and  of  destroying 
the  establishment  at  Detroit.  Not  the  least  difficult  commis- 
sion with  which  d'Aigremont  was  charged  was  to  inform  him- 
self as  to  Joncaire's  conduct,  and  report  thereon. 

There  were  further  instructions,  in  a  letter  from  the  Minister, 
Pontchartrain,  July  13th;  but  for  some  reason,  probably  be- 
cause the  season  was  far  advanced,  d'Aigremont  did  not  under- 
take his  mission  until  the  following  summer.  On  June  5, 
1708,  he  set  out  from  Montreal  in  a  large  canoe,  amply  pro- 
visioned but  carrying  no  merchandise  for  trade.  It  was  in 
fact  the  King's  express ;  and  so  well  did  his  sturdy  men  ply 


JONCA1KE  THE  ELDER  165 

their  paddles,  up  the  swift  St.  Lawrence,  through  the  tortuous 
channels  of  the  Thousand  Isles,  coasting  the  uncertain  lakes  — 
fickle  seas  even  in  midsummer  —  making  the  great  carry  around 
the  cataract  of  Niagara,  and  hastening  by  lake  and  river,  that 
they  accomplished  the  journey  as  far  as  Missilimackinac,  stop- 
ping at  the  designated  points  long  enough  to  observe  and  take 
testimony,  and  were  back  again  at  Montreal,  September  12th. 
D'Aigremont's  report,  addressed  to  Pontchartrain,  is  dated 
November  11-th;  so  that,  allowing  an  average  passage  to 
France,  more  than  a  year  and  a  half  elapsed  from  the  day 
when  the  King  made  known  his  will  regarding  a  special  investi- 
gation into  the  lake  posts,  till  he  received  the  report  of  his 
emissary. 

That  report  is  a  document  of  exceptional  value  for  the  exact 
data  it  affords.  At  Fort  Frontcnac,  where  Captain  de  Tonty 
was  in  command,  d'Aigrcmont  took  the  depositions  of  Indian 
chiefs  and  other  principal  men,  much  of  it  tending  to  show  that 
Tonty  pursued  an  arbitrary  and  selfish  policy  in  his  dealings 
both  with  Indian  hunters  and  French  soldiers  ;  "  yet  it  is  to  be 
remarked,"  writes  the  King's  reporter,  "  that  notwithstanding 
all  these  petty  larcenies,  Mr.  de  Tonty  is  deeply  in  debt;  an 
evident  proof  that  they  have  not  done  him  much  good.  What 
may  have  driven  him  to  it  is,  the  numerous  family  he  is  bur- 
dened with,  which  is  in  such  poor  condition  as  to  excite  pity." 
After  pointing  out  the  difficulty  of  keeping  the  Indians  from 
carrying  their  peltries  to  the  English,  and  the  advisability  of 
maintaining  and  strengthening  Frontenac,  d'Aigrcmont  goes 
on  to  tell  of  his  visit  at  Niagara. 

lie  had  left  Fort  Frontenac  on  June  20,  1708,  and  on  the 
27th  rounded  the  point  that  marks  the  mouth  of  the  Niagara; 
it  had  taken  him  a  week  to  follow  the  north  and  west  shores 
of  the  lake  from  Tonty's  disturbed  establishment.  Joncaire 
had  been  appraised  of  his  coming.  ''  I  found  him,"  writes 
d'Aigrcmont,  "  at  the  site  of  the  former  fort."  "  After  con- 
versing some  time  respecting  this  post,  he  admitted,  My  Lord, 
that  the  advantages  capable  of  being  derived  from  it,  by 
fortifying  it  and  placing  a  garrison  there,  would  be,  namely - 
that  a  number  of  Iroquois  would  separate  from  all  their  vil- 


166  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

lages,  and  establish  themselves  there,  by  whose  means  we  could 
always  know  what  would  be  going  on  in  those  Villages  and 
among  the  English,  and  that  it  would  be  thereby  easy  to  ob- 
viate all  the  expeditions  that  could  be  organized  against  us. 

"  That  the  Iroquois  would  trade  off  there  all  the  moose, 
deer  and  bearskins,  they  might  bring,  as  these  peltries  could 
not  be  transported  to  the  English  except  by  land,  and  conse- 
quently with  considerable  trouble. 

"  That  the  Mississaguets  settled  at  Lake  Ste.  Claire,  who 
also  convey  a  great  many  peltry  to  the  English,  will  not  fail  in 
like  manner  to  trade  off  their  moose,  deer  and  bearskins  there. 

"  That  the  Miamis  having,  like  the  Mississaguets,  demanded 
by  a  Belt  of  the  Iroquois  a  passage  through  their  country  to 
Orange  to  make  their  trade,  would  not  fail  to  sell  likewise  at 
Niagara  the  skins  that  are  difficult  of  transportation  by  land, 
and  this  more  particularly  as  the  English  esteem  them  but 
little.  But,  My  Lord,  these  considerations  appear  to  me  of 
little  importance  in  comparison  with  the  evil  which  would  arise 
from  another  side.  This  would  be,  that  all  the  Beaver  brought 
thither  by  any  nations  whatsoever  would  pass  to  the  English 
by  means  of  their  low-priced  druggets,  which  they  would  have 
sold  there  by  the  Iroquois  without  our  being  ever  able  to  pre- 
vent them,  unless  by  selling  the  French  goods  at  the  same  rate 
as  the  English  dispose  of  theirs,  which  cannot  be. 

"  It  is  true  that  this  post  could  be  of  some  consideration  in 
respect  to  Detroit  to  which  it  could  serve  as  an  entrepot  for 
all  the  goods  required  for  purposes  of  trade  there,  which  could 
be  conveyed  from  Fort  Frontenac  to  Niagara  by  bark  ;  a  vessel 
of  forty  tons  being  capable  of  carrying  as  many  goods  as 
twenty  canoes.  Though  these  goods  could,  bv  this  means,  be 
afforded  at  Detroit  at  a  much  lower  rate  than  if  carried  by 
canoes  to  Niagara,  the  prices  would  be  still  much  higher  than 
those  of  the  English.  This,  therefore,  would  not  prevent  them 
drawing  away  from  Detroit  all  the  Beaver  that  would  be 
brought  there. 

'  The  post  of  Niagara  cannot  be  maintained  except  by  es- 
tablishing that  of  La  Galette  [on  the  St.  Lawrence,  a  little 
below  present  Ogdensburg],  because  the  soil  of  Fort  Fron- 


JONCAIKE  THE  ELDER  167 

tcnac  being  of  such  a  bad  quality,  is  incapable  of  producing 
the  supplies  necessary  for  the  garrison,  its  last  one  having 
perished  only  from  want  of  assistance,  as  they  almost  all  died 
of  the  scurvy." 

D'Aigremont  discussed  at  length  the  advisability  of  creating 
an  establishment  at  La  Galette  as  a  base  of  supplies  for 
Niagara ;  but  lie  did  not  think  a  post  could  be  established  at 
Niagara  at  this  time  with  entire  success:  "At  least  great 
precautions  would  [need  be]  taken  at  the  present  time,  and 
whoever  would  propose  an  extensive  establishment  there  at  once 
would  not  fail  to  be  opposed  by  the  Iroquois.  Such  cannot 
be  arranged  with  them  except  by  means  of  Mr.  de  Longueuil 
or  of  Sicur  Joncaire,  one  or  other  of  whom  could  propose  to 
settle  among  them  at  that  point,  as  the  Iroquois  look  on  these 
two  officers  as  belonging  to  their  nation.  But  my  Lord," 
d'Aigremont  significantly  adds,  "  the  former  would  be  pre- 
ferable to  the  latter  because  there  is  not  a  man  more  adroit 
than  he  or  more  disinterested.  I  do  not  say  the  same  of  the 
other,  for  I  believe  his  greatest  study  is  to  think  of  his  private 
business,  and  private  business  is  often  injurious  to  public  af- 
fairs, especially  in  this  colony,  as  I  have  had  occasion  fre- 
quently to  remark." 

D'Aigremont  thought  there  was  so  little  prospect  that  the 
post  of  Niagara  could  be  established,  that  he  did  not  take  the 
trouble  to  report  an  estimate  of  the  expense  such  a  project 
would  incur;  but  bearing  in  mind  the  King's  remarks  regard- 
ing the  motives  which  led  Vaudreuil  to  keep  Joncaire  among  the 
Iroquois,  he  replied  to  this  point  as  follows: 

"  I  do  not  think  the  Iroquois  will  suffer  the  English  even 
to  take  possession  of  that  post  [Niagara],  because  if  they 
were  masters  of  it,  they  could  carry  on  all  the  trade  inde- 
pendent of  the  former,  which  does  not  suit  them. 

"  The  Marquis  de  Vaudreuil  sends  Sicur  de  Joncaire  every 
year  to  the  Iroquois.  lie  draws  from  the  King's  stores  for 
these  Indians  powder,  lead  and  other  articles  to  the  value  of 
2,000  livres,  or  thereabouts,  which  he  divides  among  the  Five 
Nations  as  he  considers  best.  Some  there  are  who  believe  that 
he  does  not  give  them  all,  and  that  he  sells  a  portion  to  them; 


168  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

or  at  least  that  he  distributes  it  to  them  as  if  it  were  coming 
from  himself,  thereby  to  oblige  these  Indians  to  make  him  pres- 
ents. What's  certain  is,  that  he  brings  back  from  those  parts 
a  great  many  peltries.  I  am  assured  that  they  reach  fully 
1000  annually;  in  the  last  voyage  he  made,  he  brought  down 
two  canoes  full  of  them.  He  left  one  of  them  at  the  head  of 
the  Island  of  Montreal  ["  bout  de  Tisle  "],  and  had  the  peltries 
carted  in  through  the  night.  As  for  the  rest,  My  Lord,  I  do 
not  know  whether  the  Marquis  de  Vaudreuil  has  any  share  in 
this  trade." 

The  Minister  acknowledged  this  report  in  due  time.  Writ- 
ing from  Versailles,  July  6,  1709,  he  said:  "  In  regard  to  the 
post  of  Niagara,  it  is  not  expedient  under  any  circumstances ; 
and  as  there  is  no  apprehension  that  the  Iroquois  will  take 
possession  thereof,  it  is  idle  to  think  of  it.  Therefore  we  shall 
not  require  either  Sieur  Longueil,  or  Sieur  Jonquair  [sic] 
for  that  "  ;  and  he  added  that  he  would  have  the  latter  "  watched 
in  what  relates  to  the  avidity  he  feels  to  enrich  himself  out  of 
the  presents  the  King  makes  these  Indians,  so  as  to  obviate 
this  abuse  in  future."  Even  though  Joncaire  were  chargeable 
with  undue  thrift,  Pontchartrain  evidently  felt  that  he  was  by 
all  odds  the  best  man  to  manage  the  Iroquois  in  the  French  in- 
terest. 

We  here  encounter  insinuations  against  the  character  of 
Joncaire.  In  the  King's  service,  he  was  charged  with  using 
his  opportunities  to  enrich  himself.  There  are  man}'  allusions 
to  this  not  very  surprising  matter,  from  now  on.  He  continued 
for  several  years  to  come,  in  much  the  same  employment  as  that 
which  we  have  noted.  He  never  lost  the  confidence  of  Vau- 
dreuil —  possibly,  as  the  foregoing  correspondence  may  have 
suggested  to  the  reader,  because  they  were  allied  for  personal 
profit  in  a  surreptitious  fur-trade.  In  November,  1708,  we 
find  the  Governor  commending  him  in  a  letter  to  the  Minister. 
"  Sieur  de  Joncaire,"  he  writes,  "  possesses  every  quality  re- 
quisite to  ensure  success.  He  is  daring,  liberal,  speaks  the 
[Seneca]  language  in  great  perfection,  hesitates  not  when- 
ever it  is  necessary  to  decide.  He  deserves  that  your  Grace 
should  think  of  his  promotion,  and  I  owe  him  this  justice,  that 


JONCAIRE  THE  ELDER  160 

he  attaches  himself  with  great  xeal  and  affection  to  the  good  of 
the  service." 

Joncaire  at  this  period,  1708-9,  was  much  of  the  time  at 
Onondaga,  doing  what  he  could  to  counterbalance  English 
influence.  This  was  a  task  which  yearly  grew  more  and  more 
difficult.  Although  Joncaire  to  the  end  of  his  da3Ts  retained 
the  good  will  of  the  Iroquois,  and  especially  of  the  Senecas, 
he  saw  the  hold  of  the  French  upon  them  gradually  weakened, 
the  temptations  of  English  trade  gradually  and  effectively 
strengthened. 

Conflicting  reports  reaching  the  Minister  regarding  Jon- 
caire, he  wrote  for  enlightenment:  "There  is  in  Canada  an 
officer  named  Joncaire,  interpreter  with  the  Iroquois.  His 
conduct  is  equivocal.  Some  say  he  is  a  man  not  merely  neces- 
sary but  faithful,  worthy  of  all  confidence.  Others  declare 
that  he  abuses  the  trust  placed  in  him,  in  the  distribution  of 
goods,  and  that  he  turns  Government  supplies  to  his  own 
profit."18  lie  ordered  the  Governor  to  investigate:  "If 
guilty,  have  him  make  restitution,  and  put  an  honest  man  in 
his  place." 

In  compliance  with  this  order,  a  long  report  on  Joncaire  was 
written  by  the  younger  Raudot,  son  of  the  Intendant.  From 
it  we  have  already  drawn  the  story  of  Joncaire's  escape  from 
the  stake,  and  Seneca  adoption.  Raudot,  evidently  willing 
enough  to  paint  the  interpreter  as  black  as  possible,  told  the 
same  story  that  d'Aigremont  had  included  in  his  report  —  that 
Joncaire  unloaded  his  furs  at  the  head  of  Montreal  Island  and 
had  them  carted  into  the  town  secretly  by  night.19  He  even 
undertook  to  sketch  Joncaire's  public  service. 

He  had  been,  wrote  Raudot,  one  of  Frontenac's  guardsmen, 
until  he  became  exempt  from  service.  Callieres  had  made  him 
an  officer,  and  both  of  these  Governors  had  employed  him  as  in- 
terpreter with  the  Iroquois.  lie  had  been  sent  to  the  Senecas 
with  presents,  and  to  reside,  whereas  Maricourt  lived  among 

T- Orders  of  Pontchartrain.  Versailles.  July  (?.  170ft. 

i'-'  The  date  of  Raudot's  long  letter  to  Ponchartrain.  giving  virtually  the 
history  of  Joncaire's  earlier  years,  is  Xov.  If,  1709.  TV  Aiirreniont's  report 
hears  date  Xov.  11,  1709.  The  accusations  against  Joncaire  were  no  doubt 
matters  oi'  common  knowledge. 


170  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

the  Onondagas.  When  this  officer  died,  Joncaire,  becoming 
the  chief  representative  of  France  among  the  Iroquois,  under- 
took to  move  the  chief  council-place  of  the  Iroquois  from  the 
Onondagas  to  the  Senecas.  This  stirred  up  the  Onondagas ; 
and  as  for  a  time  they  saw  no  more  French  coming  to  them 
•with  presents,  they  more  readily  inclined  to  the  overtures  of 
the  English.  Raudot  made  it  appear  that  the  Onondagas 
were  ready  to  "  raise  the  hatchet  "  against  the  French.  He 
even  pretended  to  fear  that  the  other  Iroquois  nations  would 
join  with  the  Onondagas,  "  with  the  exception  of  the  Senecas, 
who  have  always  been  firm  in  our  alliance."  This  Joncaire, 
who  was  thus  pictured  as  responsible  for  great  risks  to  his 
country,  and  the  raising  of  many  enemies,  was  being  paid  400 
livres  a  year  as  interpreter,  besides  which  he  received  300 
livres  for  outfit,  etc.,  for  each  journey  he  made.  Raudot 
thought  he  should  be  required  to  pay  this  back  "  when  peace 
comes."  "  No  one  doubts,  Monseigneur,"  added  this  informer, 
"  that  the  Sieur  de  Joncaire  receives  gifts  from  his  savages,  in 
return  for  those  he  gives,  or  that  he  trades  with  them,  since 
besides  the  gifts  he  carries  them  from  the  King's  storehouse, 
he  takes  along  quantities  of  other  merchandise.  They  claim 
there  is  never  a  journey  that  does  not  bring  him  in  two  or 
three  thousand  francs  {deux  a  trols  cents  pistoles}.  I  cannot 
however  believe  that  he  gives  the  King's  presents  as  coming  from 
himself,  the  Indians  knowing  very  well  who  sends  them ;  but  he 
could  mix  a  part  of  them  with  his  own  trade  —  or,  rather,  as 
lie  is  beloved  by  these  savages,  receive  large  presents  from 
them  for  what  he  gives.  It  is  a  difficult  thing,"  is  the  inform- 
er's smug  and  somewhat  superfluous  observation,  "  to  know 
the  truth." 


CHAPTER  XI 

ACTIVITIES  OF  JOXCAIRE 

THE  MURDER  OF  MONTOUR  • — JONCAIRE  WINS  ENGLISH  ENMITY  — 
A  TRADE  EPISODE  OF  1~17  —  THE  HOUSE  BY  THE  NIAGARA 
RAPIDS  —  A  STORMY  VISIT  FROM  LAWRENCE  CLAESSEN. 

MEANWHILE,  there  came  a  critical  time,  Schujler  and  others 
in  the  English  interest,  were  very  active  at  Onondaga ;  re- 
ports reached  Vaudreuil  that  the  Iroquois  were  declaring 
against  the  French,  that  troops  were  about  setting  out  from 
Fort  Orange  to  strike  a  blow.  The  French  missionaries, 
Lamberville  and  Mareuil,  were  frightened  or  cajoled  into  leav- 
ing. A  party  of  drunken  Indians  burned  the  chapel  and 
priest's  house  at  Onondaga,  being  set  on  thereto,  the  French 
believed,  by  Schuyler.  Joncaire  and  his  soldiers  were  at  Sodus 
Bay,  some  45  miles  away,  when  this  happened.  He  sent  word 
of  it,  June  14,  1709,  by  canoe  to  M.  de  la  Fresniere,  command- 
ing at  Frontenac.  His  letter  1  shows  that  he  was  thoroughly 

i  The  letter  referred  to,  sent  from  Sodus  Bay  ("Bay  of  the  Cayugas") 
to  M.  de  la  Fresniere,  commanding  at  Fort  Frontenae,  is  one  of  the  few 
documents  written  by  Joncaire  known  to  be  in  existence.  Its  phraseology 
helps  us  form  a  just  idea  of  the  writer,  who  expresses  himself,  not  as  a  rough 
woods-ranger  might,  but  as  one  accustomed  to  letters  and  good  society. 
This  letter,  as  printed  in  X.  Y.  Col.  Docs.,  IX,  83$,  is  as  follows: 

BAY  OF  THE  CAYCGAS,  It  June,  1709. 

SIH — Affairs  are  in  such  confusion  here  that  I  do  not  consider  my  sol- 
diers safe.  I  send  them  to  you  to  await  me  at  your  fort,  because  should 
things  take  a  bad  turn  for  us,  I  can  escape  if  alone  more  readily  than  if 
I  have  them  with  me.  It  is  not  necessary,  however,  to  alarm  Canada  yet, 
as  there  is  no  need  to  despair.  I  shall  be  with  you  in  twenty  or  twenty-five 
days  at  farthest,  and  if  I  exceed  that  time,  please  send  my  canoe  to  Montreal. 
Letters  for  the  General  will  be  found  in  my  portfolio,  which  my  wife  will 
take  care  to  deliver  to  him.  If,  however,  you  think  proper  to  forward 
them  sooner,  St.  Louis  will  hand  them  to  you.  But  I  beg  of  you  that  my 
soldiers  may  not  be  the  bearers  of  them,  calculating  with  certainty  to  find 
them  with  you  when  I  arrive,  unless  I  exceed  twenty-five  days. 

The  Hevd.  Father  de  Lamberville  has  placed  us  in  a  terrible  state  of 
embarrassment  by  his  flight.  Yesterday,  1  was  leaving  for  Montreal  in  the 
best  possible  spirits.  Xow,  I  am  not  certain  if  I  shall  ever  see  you  airain. 

I  am,  sir  and  dear  friend,  your  most  humble  and  most  obedient  servant, 

DK  JONCAIKK. 
171 


172  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

alarmed  for  the  safety  of  himself  and  men.     Regaining  his  as- 
surance, he  went  back  to  the  Senecas. 

Towards  the  end  of  April,  1709,  as  Joncaire  and  his  men 
were  at  a  place  "  called  by  the  Indians  Ossaroda  being  upon 
the  Creek  that  lyes  opposite  Cayouges,"  that  is,  Sodus  Bay, 
they  encountered  the  half-breed  interpreter  Montour,  with  10 
sachems  of  western  tribes  on  their  way  to  Albany.  Here  was 
a  clash  of  rival  interests,  the  story  of  which  is  best  told  in 
the  language  of  the  old  record  2  which  preserves  it : 

The  sd  French  Interpreter  Jean  Coeur  advised  Montour  to  turn 
back  again  otherwise  he  would  oblige  the  5  Nations  to  kill  him,  upon 
wch  he  replied  lie  would  perform  his  Journey  to  this  Place  [Albany]. 
Jean  Ceur  then  desired  him  to  smoak,  he  replied  he  had  no  Tobacco. 
Jean  Ceur  then  gave  him  a  little,  Montour  took  out  his  knife  to 
cut  it,  Jean  Ceur  then  asked  what  he  did  with  such  a  little  Knife  & 
desired  Montour  to  give  it  him  &  he  would  give  him  one  that  was 
better.  As  soon  as  Jean  Ceur  had  the  Knife  lie  flung  it  away  at 
the  same  time  there  stood  a  French  Man  behind  Montour  with  a 
Hatchet  under  his  Coat  who  cut  the  sd  Montour  into  his  Head  & 
killed  him,  whereupon  the  10  Sachems  come  to  Cayouge  with  Mon- 
tour would  have  killed  the  French  Interpreter  Jean  Ceur  &  all  his 
Company  if  it  had  not  been  for  the  sd  Montours  Brother  in  Law 
who  prevented  it. 

Joncaire's  return  to  the  Senecas  at  this  time  won  for  him 
more  warm  praise  from  Vaudreuil,  who  wrote  to  Pontchar- 
train  that  Joncaire,  "  by  his  return  to  the  Senecas,  has  given 
evidence  of  all  the  firmness  that  is  to  be  expected  from  a  worthy 
officer  who  has  solely  in  view  the  good  of  his  Majesty's  service." 
One  reason  for  Joncaire's  enmity  towards  Montour  was  that 
the  latter  had  turned  traitor  to  the  French,  and  not  only 
thwarted  their  aims  among  the  Iroquois,  whenever  he  could, 
but  induced  bands  of  western  Indians,  bringing  furs  for  trade, 
to  carry  them  to  Albany,  rather  than  make  barter  with  Jon- 
caire. 

Later  this  year  Joncaire  went  to  Montreal  with  Father 
d'Heu  and  a  French  blacksmith  who  had  been  for  some  rears 

2  Wraxall's  "Abridgment  of  Indian  Affairs."  The  details  here  given 
have  been  nowhere  else  noted. 


ACTIVITIES  OF  JONCAIRE  173 

in  the  Seneca  villages,  and  a  band  of  some  forty  Senecas  as 
escort. 

In  July,  1710,  the  French  took  alarm  lest  the  Iroquois  should 
join  the  English  in  a  threatened  expedition  against  Canada. 
Longueuil  and  Joncaire,  with  ten  other  Frenchmen  and  some 
Indians,  hastened  to  Onondaga,  where  the  French,  through 
Joncaire,  as  interpreter,  made  an  exceedingly  vigorous  har- 
angue, threatening  the  Indians  with  dire  vengeance  if  they 
shared  in  the  hostile  movement.  "  If  you  do,"  said  Joncaire 
(as  reported  in  the  English  documents),  "we  will  not  only 
come  ourselves,  but  sett  the  farr  Nations  upon  you  to  destroy 
you  your  wifes  and  Children  Root  &  Branch.  .  .  .  Be  quiett 
and  sett  still."  There  was  a  divided  sentiment  in  this  council, 
but  finally  the  French  influence  appeared  to  prevail,  though  a 
delegation  of  Indians  soon  appeared  in  Albany  to  inform  Gov- 
ernor Robert  Hunter  of  all  that  Joncaire  had  said,  and  to  re- 
ceive English  assurances  of  friendship.  On  the  other  hand, 
a  little  later,  Vaudreuil  reported  the  matter  to  the  Minister.3 
He  begged  of  Monseigneur  Pontchartrain  that  he  specially  re- 
member the  services  of  Joncaire  and  Longueuil,  "  who  expose 
themselves  to  being  burnt  alive,  for  the  preservation  of  the 
country  in  keeping  peace  with  the  Iroquois,  who  without  them 
would  inevitably  make  war."  Joncaire,  he  added,  has  the  same 
influence  among  the  Senecas  that  Longueuil  has  with  the 
Onondagas.  Notwithstanding  that  Joncaire,  the  preceding 
summer,  "  was  obliged  to  stay  among  them,  and  to  send  back 
his  soldiers,  in  fear  lest  they  would  be  put  in  the  kettle,  expos- 
ing himself  alone  to  the  caprice  of  these  people  in  order  to 
endeavor  to  keep  the  peace,''  yet  he  still  continued  to  receive' 
their  favor,  "  as  if  himself  a  Seneca."  At  this  time,  the  French 
flattered  themselves  that  they  could  count  on  the  friendship 
of  all  of  the  Five  Nations  except  the  Mohawks,  who  were  most 
under  English  influence. 

We  find  Joncaire,  in  September,  carrying  messages  from 
M.  de  Rame/ay,  commandant  at  Front enae,  to  Vaudreuil  at 
Montreal.  It  was  from  Joncaire  that  the  Governor  received 

-Vaudreuil  tn  Pontchartruin,  X»v.  :>i),  1710.  There  are  numerous  allu- 
sions to  the  matter  in  the  diK'uments. 


174  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

the   first  intelligence   of  the  preparations   which  the   English 
were  making  at  Boston  and  elsewhere,  to  attack  Canada. 

When  Ramezay,  in  1710,  marched  against  the  English, 
Joncaire  commanded  the  Iroquois  from  Sault  St.  Louis  and 
the  Mountain,  who  made  up  the  rear  of  the  army ;  and  he  was 
probably  with  Vaudreuil,  in  September  of  that  year  in  the 
advance  to  Chambly  in  quest  of  the  English.  More  urgent 
matters  in  the  East  for  a  time  withdrew  the  attention  of  Gov- 
ernment from  the  Niagara  and  its  problems.  Still,  no  emer- 
gency could  arise  which  could  make  Vaudreuil  forgetful  of 
the  Iroquois. 

For  the  next  few  years  Joncaire  continued  to  go  back  and 
forth  between  Montreal,  where  he  acted  as  interpreter,  and 
the  Seneca  villages,  where  he  was  supposed  to  be  at  work 
to  offset  the  influences  of  the  English,  chiefly  as  made  mani- 
fest through  Peter  Schuyler.  We  find  record  that  he  was 
among  the  Senecas  in  1710  and  again  in  1711. 

At  a  great  war-banquet  in  Montreal,  in  August,  1711,  at 
which  700  or  800  warriors  assembled,  "  Joncaire  and  la  Chau- 
vignerie  first  raised  the  hatchet  an3  sang  the  war-song  in 
Ononthio's  name."  This  was  on  receipt  of  the  news  that  the 
English  were  preparing  to  attack  Quebec.  Many  of  the  In- 
dians answered  the  cry  of  the  warlike  Joncaire  with  applause, 
only  the  Indians  from  the  upper  country  hesitating,  because 
they  had,  almost  all,  been  trading  with  the  English ;  but  in  the 
end,  twenty  Detroit  Hurons  taking  up  the  hatchet,  all  who 
were  present  declared  for  the  French.  The  incident  shows 
of  what  great  value  Joncaire  was  to  the  cause  of  the  French 
at  this  critical  time,  in  holding  for  them  the  good  will  of  the 
Iroquois  and  tribes  to  the  westward. 

The  next  year,  1712,  he  was  for  a  time  in  command  at 
Fort  Frontenac,  in  place  of  the  Sieur  de  la  Frcsniere,  who 
was  incapacitated  by  fever.  At  this  time  the  Senecas  were 
much  disturbed  over  matters  to  the  westward.  They  feared, 
in  the  event  of  an  outbreak  against  Detroit  or  by  the  tribes 
at  the  Sault,  that  they  would  be  beset  on  the  Niagara  side. 
They  sent  a  lar^c  delegation  to  Montreal,  but  declared  to 
Vaudreuil  "that  they  should  not  speak  unless  Sieur  de  Jon- 


ACTIVITIES  OF  JONCAIRE  175 

cairc  were  present."  That  officer  arrived  from  Fort  Fron- 
tenac  in  September.  We  have  not  the  details  of  the  con- 
ference that  followed ;  but  the  Senecas  made  their  usual  pledges 
of  confidence  in  the  French.  At  the  same  time,  other  tribes 
assembled  at  Onondaga  were  showing  decided  preference  for 
the  English,  and  sending  word  to  the  Indians  at  the  Sault,  re- 
questing them  "  to  remain  passive  on  their  mats,  and  not  to 
take  any  sides,"  whatever  might  happen. 

For  the  next  few  years  I  find  little  trace  of  Joncaire ;  but 
there  is  no  reason  to  suppose  that  he  did  not  continue  in  the 
same  service  as  for  the  preceding  years. 

By  his  influence  among  the  Iroquois,  Joncaire  was  enabled 
to  render  a  peculiar  service  in  the  summer  of  1715.  The  post 
of  Michilimackinac  was  distressed  through  lack  of  provisions. 
An  appeal  was  made  to  Dubisson,  commanding  at  Detroit;  but 
he  sent  word  that  the  corn  supply  had  run  so  short  that  he 
had  been  obliged  to  send  the  Sieur  Dupuy  to  the  Miamis  to 
try  to  buy  of  them,  but  it  was  doubtful  if  they  could  supply 
enough.  In  this  extremity  Ramezay  appealed  to  Joncaire, 
who  went  among  his  Iroquois  friends  in  the  villages  of  Central 
New  York  and  bought  300  minots  of  corn  —  about  900 
bushels.  This  he  made  the  Indians  carry  to  the  shore  of  Lake 
Ontario,  some  twenty  leagues  from  the  place  of  purchase. 
There  it  was  loaded  into  the  canoes  for  Capt.  Deschaillons  and 
dispatched  to  the  distressed  post ;  but  all  of  this  occasioned 
such  delays  that  a  hundred  Frenchmen  and  Canadians  were 
allowed  to  leave  Mackinac  and  go  down  to  Montreal  to  win- 
ter. 

In  the  autumn  of  1716,  on  his  return  to  Montreal  from  the 
Iroquois  cantons,  Lieut,  de  Longueuil  had  called  the  attention 
of  MM.  de  Ramezay  and  Begon  to  the  need  of  a  "  little  estab- 
lishment "  "on  the  north  [east]  side  of  Niagara,  on  Lake 
Ontario,  100  leagues  from  the  fort  of  Frontenac,  a  canoe 
journey  of  seven  or  eight  days."  Such  a  post,  he  claimed, 
would  attract  the  Mississagas  and  Amicoues  to  trade  with  the 
Iroquois,  when  the  latter  went  to  hunt  in  the  vicinity  of  Lake 
Erie.  He  also  proposed  that  a  barque  should  be  built  to 
serve  as  a  transport  between  Frontenac  and  Niagara,  claiming 


176  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

that  it  would  be  a  sure  means  of  conciliating  the  Iroquois  and 
of  gaining  a  great  part  of  the  fur  trade  which  now  went  to  the 
English.  With  such  a  post  at  Niagara,  it  would  be  possible 
to  keep  the  coureurs  de  bois  from  trading  in  Lake  Ontario, 
either  by  seizing  their  goods  or  arresting  the  traders,  who 
were  working  mischief  for  the  traffic  at  Fort  Frontenac.  De 
Ramezaj,  in  communicating  these  views  to  Vaudreuil,  com- 
mented that  if  such  a  post  were  approved,  the  trade  there 
should  be  kept  to  the  King's  account.4  The  Marquis  de  Vaud- 
reuil would  not  agree  to  establish  this  post  at  Niagara  until 
the  Iroquois  should  ask  for  it.  The  council  approved,  grant- 
ing permission  to  proceed  as  suggested,  if  the  Senecas  wished 
it.  This  proposed  establishment  was  never  built,  but  we  have 
in  Longueuil's  suggestions  another  form  of  the  project  which 
some  four  years  later  was  to  take  shape  in  the  Magazin  Royal 
at  Lewiston,  and  nearly  ten  years  later  in  the  permanent 
foundation  of  Fort  Niagara.  Due  recognition  must  be  taken 
of  Longueuil's  foresight  at  this  time.  Apparently  to  him, 
and  not  to  Joncaire,  is  due  the  suggestion  which  later  ripened 
into  the  Niagara  establishment.  Though  employed  for  many 
years  in  similar  service,  the  one  among  the  Onondagas,  the 
other  with  the  Senecas,  and  though  equally  commended,  in  dis- 
patches to  the  Minister,  for  their  zeal  and  sagacity,  a  certain 
distinction  attaches  to  Longueuil  and  his  part  in  our  history, 
which  is  not  shared  by  Joncaire;  a  distinction  due  no  doubt  to 
family  and  social  standing,  rather  than  to  native  ability  or  de- 
votion to  the  service. 

Perusal  of  the  New  York  Indian  records  for  the  first  three 
decades  of  the  Eighteenth  century  —  down  indeed  to  the  day 
of  his  death  —  discovers  endless  complaints  of  Joncaire  and 
his  activities.  His  usefulness  to  the  French  can  in  a  way  be 
demonstrated  from  the  trouble  he  made  for  the  English,  and 
for  the  Dutch  traders  at  Albany,  and  the  Indians  in  English 
allegiance.  One  tale  that  was  told  of  him  was  that  he  had 
tried  to  stir  up  the  Senecas  "  to  kill  and  plunder  all  the  farr 
Indians  "  that  came  to  the  Niagara  or  Lake  Ontario  to 

*  MM.   de   Ramexay   and   Begon,  at   Quebec,   to   the   Council  of   Marine, 
Paris,  Nov.  7,  1716. 


ACTIVITIES  OF  JONCAIKE  177 

trade.5  Albany  lent  a  ready  ear  to  anything  that  was  alleged 
against  this  arch-enemy ;  who  went  his  way,  in  the  service  of 
King  and  country,  with  singular  zeal  and  amazing  influence. 

Coming  from  Montreal  to  what  is  now  Western  New  York, 
in  December,  1716,  he  found  the  Seneca  villages  ravaged  by 
small-pox.  A  band  of  300  warriors,  which  set  out  to  attack 
the  Illinois,  returned  because  their  chief  had  died  of  this  dis- 
ease, which  more  than  once,  in  the  years  we  here  study,  took 
heavy  toll  from  the  Iroquois  and  the  tribes  to  the  south  and 
west.  The  evil  reports  which  the  English  had  spread,  regard- 
ing Joncairc,  so  influenced  even  his  Seneca  friends,  that  they 
questioned  if  he  had  not  come  among  them  as  a  spy ;  and  when 
he  went  back  to  Montreal  a  high  chief  accompanied  him,  to 
learn  if  the  French  were  preparing  to  attack  them.'5 

October  24,  1717,  at  a  conference,  apparently  held  at  Onon- 
daga,  the  Senecas  made  the  surprising  inquiry,  if  Joncairc 
were  not  among  them  "  only  as  a  Spy."  He  had  spent  the 
winter  of  1716-17  in  the  Senecas'  country.  In  spite  of  his 
affiliation  and  long-standing  friendship  with  the  Senecas,  "  a 
rumor  prevailed  that  he  had  been  sent  thither  to  amuse  them 
whilst  preparations  were  being  made  to  march  against  them 
in  the  Spring."  ~  This  suspicion  of  Joncaire  was  undoubtedly 
due  to  the  influence  of  the  English,  which  by  this  time  had  be- 
come predominant  among  the  eastern  Indians  of  the  Federa- 
tion. Even  the  Senecas  were  wavering  and  doubtful.  Jon- 
cairc, when  charged  with  being  a  spy,  "  did  all  in  his  power 
to  disabuse  them ;  but  though  highly  esteemed  among  and  even 
adopted  bv  them,  he  could  not  succeed  in  removing  their  sus- 
picion, for  at  the  moment  of  his  departure  for  Montreal,  they 
sent  a  chief  of  high  character  with  him  to  know  from  him  whether 
it  were  true  that  he  designed  to  attack  them." 

So   reads   the   somewhat   obscure  document.      The   object   of 

•r>  Mdlwain's  "  Wnixall,"  (iS. 

r-  Record  of  the  incident  is  preserved  in  the  Correspomlancr  C!<'n>'r(il< . 
(MS.  vol.  IK) 

"  Proceedings  in  the  Council  of  (he  Marine,  June  2,~>,  171S,  siirncd  I..  A. 
do  Bourbon  and  I.e  Marcchal  IV  ]•'.-,{  rces.  The  document  is  marked:  "To 
be  taken  to  my  Lord  the  Duke  of  Orleans."  See  X.  Y.  Col.  Does.,  IX, 
876-878. 


178  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

the  embassy  to  Montreal  was  obviously  to  learn,  not  from 
Joncaire  but  from  Vaudreuil,  if  any  steps  were  to  be  taken 
hostile  to  the  Senecas.  Later,  a  delegation  of  chiefs  and  forty 
others  arrived  and  were  given  audience  by  Vaudreuil.  With 
elaborate  ceremony  they  bewailed  the  death  of  the  old  King,8 
gave  to  Vaudreuil  a  belt  which  they  begged  he  would  send  to 
the  young  King,  whom  they  asked  to  take  them  under  his  pro- 
tection ;  and  did  not  omit  the  usual  request  at  these  confer- 
ences, that  Joncaire,  the  de  Longueuils,  father  and  son,  and 
de  la  Chauvignerie,  "  Should  be  allowed  to  go  into  their  villages 
whenever  they  would  wish  to  do  so,  or  should  be  invited  by 
their  nations.  They  added,  that  they  were  fully  aware  that 
there  were  some  people  (meaning  the  English)  whom  this  would 
not  please,  but  no  notice  must  be  taken  of  such ;  that  they  were 
the  masters  of  their  own  country,  and  wished  their  children  to 
be  likewise  its  masters,  and  to  go  thither  freely  whenever  M. 
de  Vaudreuil  should  permit  them."  This  declaration  of  mas- 
tery in  their  own  country  illustrates  anew  the  unstable  and 
bewildered  state  of  mind  in  which  the  Five  Nations  then  were. 
Some  years  since,  they  had  formally  deeded  their  country  to 
William  III ;  and  on  more  than  one  occasion  they  had  acknowl- 
edged the  authority  of  the  French. 

In  June,  Alphonse  de  Tonty  left  Montreal  for  Detroit,  at 
which  post  he  had  been  granted  the  privilege  of  trade,  on  con- 
dition that  he  would  confine  his  operations  to  the  jurisdiction 
of  Detroit,  nor  send  goods  for  sale  to  distant  tribes.  In  cross- 
ing Lake  Ontario,  on  his  way  to  Niagara,  he  met  nine  canoes, 
all  going  to  Albany  to  trade.  Three  were  from  Mackinac,  three 
from  Detroit  and  three  from  Saginaw.  Tonty  endeavored  to 
head  off  this  prospective  trade  for  the  English,  and  succeeded 
so  well,  heightening  his  arguments  by  substantial  presents, 
that  they  all  agreed  not  to  go  to  Albany,  but  to  go  with  him 
to  Detroit. 

Two  days  later,  when  this  imposing  flotilla  was  within  six 
miles  of  Niagara,  they  fell  in  with  seventeen  canoes,  full  of 
Indians  and  peltries.  In  reply  to  his  inquiries,  these  also  ad- 
mitted that  they  were  going  to  Albany  to  trade,  though  they 

'Louis  XIV  had  died  Sept.  1,  1715. 


ACTIVITIES  OF  JONCAIRE  179 

added  that  they  were  corning  to  Detroit  afterwards.  Tonty 
was  equal  to  the  emergency.  Inspired  by  self-interest  as  well 
as  loyalty  to  his  Government,  "  he  induced  them  also  to  aban- 
don their  design,  by  the  promise  that  the  price  of  merchandise 
at  Detroit  should  be  diminished,  and  he  would  also  give  them 
some  brandy."  ;>  There  followed  a  judicious  distribution  of 
this  potent  commodity. 

One  is  tempted  to  conjure  up  the  scene.  Here  were  twenty- 
six  laden  canoes,  not  counting  Tonty's  own  boats.  They  had 
come  long  journeys  from  remote  and  widely  separated  points, 
and  their  one  objective  point  was  the  Englishmen's  trading- 
place  on  the  Hudson.  But  no  sooner  do  thev  come  under  the 
blandishments  of  the  Frenchman,  and  scent  the  aroma  of  his 
brandy-kegs,  than  these  long-cherished  plans  so  arduously  fol- 
lowed, are  thrown  to  the  winds.  They  beach  their  canoes  at 
or  near  the  point  of  Niagara.  A  cask  of  liquor  is  broached, 
and  Tonty  permits  the  thirst}"  savages  "  to  buy  two  or  three 
quarts  of  brandy  each,  to  take  to  their  villages.  But  they  first 
agreed  that  it  should  be  carefully  distributed  by  a  trusty  per- 
son." 

In  spite  of  these  reassuring  precautions,  the  transaction 
seems  somewhat  to  have  burdened  his  mind,  for  he  thought  it 
well  to  explain  that  "  he  hoped  the  council  would  nob  disap- 
prove of  what  he  had  done,  nor  of  the  continuance  of  the  same 
course,  as  he  had  no  other  intention  than  merely  to  hinder 
the  .savages  from  going  to  the  English." 

He  succeeded  fairly  well  in  that  purpose.  After  the  dis- 
tribution of  brandy,  they  all  reembarked,  seven  of  the  canoes 
promising  to  go  to  Montreal.  Tonty  sent  back  with  them  his 
trusty  interpreter,  L'Orangcr,  to  keep  them  from  changing 
their  minds  as  they  paddled  down  the  lake.  '"  lie  was  only 
able  to  conduct  six  of  them  to  [Montreal;  the  seventh  escaped 
and  went  to  Orange." 

[Meanwhile  ten  canoes  joined  the  commandant's  own  re- 
tinue; all  paddled  swiftly  up  the  Niagara  to  the  old  landing, 
made  the  toilsome  portage  around  the  falls  and  pushed  on  to- 

n  Report    of   L.    A.   de    Bourbon,    secretary,   Council   of   Marine.    Oct.    12, 
1717. 


180  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

gether  for  Detroit,  where  they  arrived  July  3d.  It  was  a 
typical  move  in  the  game  that  was  being  played,  and  France 
had  gained  the  point. 

This  expedition  was  notable  for  its  use  of  the  Niagara  route. 
Only  a  few  years  before  we  find  Vaudreuil  explaining  to  the 
Minister  that  he  dispatched  the  Sieur  de  Lignery  to  Mackinac, 
and  Louvigny  to  Detroit,  by  the  Ottawra  River  route,  because, 
the  Senecas  had  warned  him  that  a  band  of  Foxes  lay  in  wait 
for  plunder  at  the  Niagara  portage,  or  on  Lake  Erie.10  If 
this  were  not  duplicity  on  the  part  of  the  Senecas,  it  shows  that 
war  parties  from  the  West  foraged  as  far  east  as  the  Niagara ; 
notwithstanding  the  supposed  jealousy  with  w7hich  the  Senecas 
guarded  it. 

Again  we  lose  sight  of  Joncaire  for  a  time ;  but  the  events 
of  1720,  a  date  of  great  importance  in  the  history  of  the 
Niagara,  indicate  that  he  was  long  busy  with  plans  for  giving 
the  French  a  foothold  on  the  river,  and  that  even  his  Seneca 
friends  had  increasing  cause  to  regard  him  with  suspicion. 

The  attention  of  the  Government  was  turning  more  seriously 
than  ever  before,  to  the  Niagara  passage  as  a  means  of  reach- 
ing the  upper  posts.  A  "  Memoir  on  the  Indians  of  Canada,  as 
far  as  the  River  Mississippi,  with  remarks  on  their  manners 
and  trade,"  dated  1718,  affords  an  interesting  glimpse  of  our 
river  at  that  period : 

The  Niagara  portage  is  two  leagues  and  a  half  to  three  leagues 
long,  but  the  road,  over  which  carts  roll  two  or  three  times  a  year, 
is  very  fine,  with  very  beautiful  and  open  woods  through  which  a 
person  is  visible  for  a  distance  of  600  paces.  The  trees  are  all 
oaks,  and  very  large.  The  soil  along  the  entire  [length]  of  that 
road  is  not  very  good.  From  the  landing,  which  is  three  leagues  up 
the  river,  four  hills  are  to  be  ascended.  Above  the  first  hill  there 

10  Vaudreuil  to  the  Minister,  Oct.  15,  1712.  In  a  subsequent  letter, 
Nov.  (J,  171 J,  Vaudreuil  speaks  of  the  band  of  Otajramis  (»'.  e.  Outapamis, 
otherwise  Foxes  or  Sars),  led  by  one  Vonncre,  who  lay  in  wait  at  the 
Niagara  portage,  so  that  an  expedition  for  Detroit  led  by  M.  de  Vin«-enncs 
was  sent  by  the  Ottawa  River  route,  "not  only  to  avoid  these  savages,  but 
to  prevent  the  eonvov  from  beinjr  pillaged  by  the  Iroquois,"  etc.  The  name 
"Vonnere"  is  found  elsewhere  in  the  more  probable  form  "  Le  Tomicrre," 
i.  e.,  "  Thunderbolt." 


ACTIVITIES  OF  JONCAIRE  181 

is  a  Seneca  village  of  about  ten  cabins,  where  Indian  corn,  beans, 
peas,  watermelons  and  pumpkins  are  raised,  all  which  are  very 
fine.  These  Senecas  are  employed  by  the  French,  from  whom  they 
earn  money  by  carrying  the  goods  of  those  who  are  going  to  the 
upper  country;  some  for  mitasses,11  others  for  shirts,  some  for  pow- 
der and  ball,  whilst  some  others  pilfer;  and  on  the  return  of  the 
French,  they  carry  their  packs  of  furs  for  some  peltry.  This  por- 
tage is  made  for  the  purpose  of  avoiding  the  Cataract  of  Niagara, 
the  grandest  sheet  of  water  in  the  world,  having  a  perpendicular  fall 
of  two  or  three  hundred  feet.  This  fall  is  the  outlet  of  Lakes  Erie, 
Huron,  Michigan,  Superior,  and  consequently  of  the  numberless  riv- 
ers discharging  into  these  lakes,  with  the  names  of  which  I  am  not 
acquainted.  The  Niagara  portage-  having  been  passed,  we  ascend 
a  river  six  leagues  in  length  and  more  than  a  quarter  of  a  league  in 
width,  in  order  to  enter  Lake  Krie,  which  is  not  very  wide  at  its 
mouth.  The  route  by  the  Southern,  is  much  finer  than  that  along 
the  Northern  shore.  The  reason  that  few  persons  take  it  is,  that  it 
is  thirty  leagues  longer  than  that  along  the  north.  There  is  no  need 
of  fasting  on  either  side  of  this  lake,  deer  are  to  be  found  there  in 
such  great  abundance;  buffaloes  are  found  on  the  South,  but  not  on 
the  North  shore. 

This  valuable  Memoir,  long  and  full  of  explicit  informa- 
tion regarding  the  lake  region,  and  the  country  and  peoples 
to  the  west  as  far  as  the  Mississippi,  is  of  unknown  author- 
ship. It  was  probably  written  by  some  French  officer  assigned 
to  a  western  post.  As  regards  the  Niagara,  it  antedates  by 
three  years  the  visit  of  the  Jesuit  Charlevoix,  and  it  gives  us 
our  first  information  of  Seneca  settlement  on  the  banks  of 
the  river.  Although  throughout  these  earlier  years  and  for 
some  time  yet  to  come  the  Ottawa  route  was  used  more  than 
the-  Niagara,  yet  there  can  be  no  doubt  that,  prior  to  1720, 
manv  an  expedition  to  the  West  had  passed  this  way.  Many 
a  canoe,  coming  now  singly,  now  in  pairs,  now  in  numbers, 
had  no  doubt  carried  the  conrcnr  <le  bois,  and  the  trader  with 
his  merchandise,  from  Lake  Ontario  up  the  beautiful  stretch  of 
green  water  till  stopped  by  tin-  rapids  in  the  gorge;  had  made 

11  According  to  O'Callaphan,  this  is  another  instance  of  the  adoption  of 
Indian  words  Iiy  Furoprans.  Mifnx  is  not  a  French  but  an  Algonquin 
word  for  stockings  or  leiriiinirs,  in  the  "Vocabulary"  of  La  Hontan,  II.  •-??",?. 


182  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

the  steep  climb  up  those  "  mountains  "  and  followed  the  well- 
worn  path  of  the  long  portage  until,  in  navigable  water  above 
the  great  cataract,  a  new  embarkation  could  be  made  with 
safety.  Many  a  voyageur,  too,  returning  from  the  West,  as 
messenger  from  one  of  the  upper  posts  or  with  canoes  laden 
with  packets  of  skins,  had  no  doubt  braved  the  dangers  and 
difficulties  of  the  Iroquois  route,  that  he  might  sooner  reach. 
Frontenac  and  the  settlements  down  the  St.  Lawrence.  Some 
of  these  expeditions  we  have  traced;  but  when  one  studies  the 
history  of  Detroit  and  Mackinac  and  the  various  establish- 
ments on  Lake  Michigan,  and  notes  the  frequent  communica- 
tion they  kept  up  with  Montreal,  he  can  but  conclude  that, 
notwithstanding  the  known  use  of  the  Ottawa  route,  there 
must  have  been  many  a  hardy  traveler  on  the  Niagara  of 
whose  presence  there  is  no  more  record  in  history  than  there  is 
trace  of  his  keel  in  the  waters  he  traversed.  Joncaire  himself, 
known  and  welcomed  throughout  the  country  of  the  Senecas, 
was  probably  on  the  river  many  a  time  since  his  meeting  with 
d'Aigremont,  on  the  site  of  Fort  Denonville;  but  not  until 
1720  do  we  find  official  record  to  that  effect. 

Early  in  May,  1720,  Joncaire  appeared  at  Fort  Fron- 
tenac. The  previous  year,  at  the  beginning  of  harvest,  he 
had  laden  his  canoe  with  trinkets,  "  small  merchandizes,"  pow- 
der, lead,  not  forgetting  the  useful  belts  of  wampum  and  the 
equally  useful  brandy,  and  had  crossed  over  to  the  Long  House 
of  the  Iroquois.  Here,  in  the  heart  of  our  New  York  State, 
he  had  wintered,  part  of  the  time  at  the  great  Seneca  village 
and  part  of  the  time  at  the  little  village.12 

It  was  by  the  instructions  of  Vaudreuil  and  Bcgon  that  he 
made  this  sojourn,  the  design  being  that  he  should  win  for  the 
French  such  favor  that  they  might  carry  out  undisturbed  the 

12  In  1720  "  the  great  Seneca  village "  was  apparently  at  the  White 
Springs,  one  and  one  half  miles  southwest  of  Geneva.  It  later  removed  to 
a  location  some  two  miles  northwest  of  Geneva,  where  it  was  long  famous 
as  the  Ga-nun-da-sa-ga  of  the  Senecas,  otherwise  Kanadesaga.  "  The 
Seneca  castle  called  Onahe,"  mentioned  further  on  in  our  narrative,  was  at 
this  period  ahout  three  miles  southeast  from  the  present  village  of  Canan- 
daigua.  These  locations  are  in  accordance  with  conclusions  reached  by 
the  late  George  S.  Conover  of  Geneva,  than  whom  probably  no  one  has 
made  a  more  thorough  study  of  the  subject. 


ACTIVITIES  OF  JONCAIRE  183 

orders  which  the  Court  had  promulgated  in  171 H,  namely,  the 
building  of  magazines  and  stockaded  houses  at  Niagara  and 
other  Lake  Ontario  points. 

The  winter  had  been  well  spent.  lie  brought  back  with 
him  to  Frontenac  not  merely  several  bundles  of  peltries,  but 
good  tidings  which  a  council  was  quickly  summoned  to  hear. 
The  Scnecas  were  most  favorably  disposed  towards  their  father 
Onontio,  and  to  the  uncle  Sononchiez,  by  which  name  they 
had  come  affectionately  to  designate  Joncaire.  Their  father 
and  their  uncle,  their  message  ran,  were  masters  of  their  land. 
"  The  Indians  consented  not  only  to  the  building  of  the  House 
of  Niagara  but  also  engaged  themselves  to  maintain  it.  And 
if  the  English  should  undertake  to  demolish  it  they  must  first 
take  up  the  hatchet  against  the  Cabanes  of  the  two  villages  of 
the  Sennekas."  1:i  Such,  at  any  rate,  was  the  message  as  de- 
livered to  the  delighted  council. 

No  time  was  lost.  In  "  10  or  12  days  "  a  canoe  was  packed 
with  goods :  "  Some  pieces  of  Blew  Cloth  three  dozen  or 
thereabouts  of  white  Blankets  for  the  use  of  the  Indians  half  a 
Barrel  of  Brandy  &c  ";  and  with  eight  soldiers  and  young  La- 
Cornc  —  son  of  Captain  de  La  Cornc,  Mayor  of  Montreal  — 
the  expedition  set  out  gaily  for  our  river.  The  season  was  pro- 
pitious, the  voyage  short  and  successful.  They  entered  the 
mouth  of  the  Niagara  and  pressed  on  up  the  river  to  the  head 
of  navigation.  Here,  at  the  beginning  of  the  portage  on  the 
east  side  of  the1  gorge,  where  Lewiston  now  stands,  "  the  Sieur 
de  Joncaire  &  le  Corne  caused  to  be  built  in  haste  a  kind  of 
Cabbin  of  Bark  where  they  displayed  the  Kings  Colors  &  hon- 
ored it  with  the  name  of  the  Macjazin  Koyal.'1'' 

Joncaire  did  not  linger  long,  but  went  very  soon  to  confirm 
his  peace  with  the  Senecas,  leaving  La  Corne  in  command. 
From  the  Senecas'  village  he  hastened  back  to  Frontenac. 
There  he  took  into  his  canoe  as  compngnon  du  rot/age  John 
Durant,  the  chaplain  of  the  fort,  from  whose  memorial  are 
drawn  in  part  the  data  for  this  portion  of  our  narrative.  They 
voyaged  together  to  Quebec,  arriving  September  3d,  and  .Jon- 
caire was  granted  early  audience  with  Vaudreuil  and  the  In- 

i3  Durant's  Memorial,  X.   V.  Col.   Docs.,   V,  088. 


184  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

tendant,  to  whom  he  told  what  he  had  done.  Vaudreuil  was 
pleased,  and  the  next  day  bestowed  upon  him  the  title  of  Com- 
mandant at  Niagara,  and  bade  him  hasten  back  to  that  pre- 
carious post.  There  was  joined  to  this  new  dignity  an  order 
for  the  inspection  of  the  magazine  "  established  in  the  Lake  of 
Ontario.  This  Magazine  is  situate  on  the  west  of  the  Lake  for 
the  Trade  with  the  Missasague  otherwise  called  the  Round 
Heads  distant  about  thirty  leagues  from  that  of  Niagara. 
The  House  at  the  bottom  of  the  Lake  14  was  built  by  the  Sieur 
de  Anville  a  little  after  that  of  Niagara."  15  The  Sieur  Dou- 
ville  had  built  another  house,  for  trade  with  the  Ottawas,  at 

14  7.  e.,  foot,  west  end.  The  allusion  is  probably  to  a  trading  station  at 
Burlington  Bay,  designated  in  some  French  maps  as  " Le  fond  du  Lac" 

is  The  builder  of  the  trading-post  at  the  head  of  Lake  Ontario,  the 
builder  of  the  trading-post  on  the  Bay  of  Quinte,  and  the  officer  who  spent 
the  winter  of  1720-21  on  the  Niagara,  are  apparently  the  same  man,  vari- 
ously designated  in  the  printed  documents  as  "  the  Sieur  de  Anville,"  "  the 
Sieur  D'Agneaux,"  and  "  the  Sieur  D'Ouville."  The  name  is  also  to  be 
found  written  '  d'Auville "  and  "  d'Agneaux."  Some  of  these  variants  are 
doubtless  due  to  illegible  manuscript,  or  inaccurate  copying.  He  appears 
to  have  been  the  same  officer  who,  at  a  conference  with  the  Iroquois  at  Que- 
bec, Nov.  2,  1748,  signed  his  name  "Dagneaux  Douville."  He  was  a  lieuten- 
ant in  the  detachment  of  Marine  troops  serving  in  Canada.  In  1750  he  is 
spoken  of  as  "Sieur  Douville,"  commandant  of  Sault  St.  Louis;  and  in  1756, 
when  he  shared  in  another  conference  with  Indians  at  Montreal,  as  "  Lieut. 
Douville." 

I  find  it  impossible,  from  the  allusions  in  the  records,  to  be  definite  re- 
garding French  officers  in  the  Canadian  service,  who  are  designated  as 
"  Douville."  Philippe  Dagneau  Douville,  Sieur  de  la  Saussave,  born  1700, 
was  commandant  at  Toronto  in  1759.  His  brother,  spoken  of  also  as 
Sieur  de  la  Saussaye,  was  at  Niagara,  en  route  for  Detroit,  in  1739.  The 
latter  appears  to  have  been  the  Alexandre  Dagneau  Douville  who  served 
among  the  Miamis,  1747— 48;  who  was  sent  out  from  Fort  Duquesne  in  1756, 
on  a  foraging  expedition,  and  was  killed  the  next  year  in  an  attack  on  a 
fort  in  Virginia.  A  "Douville"  was  second  ensign  under  Capt.  Duplissis 
in  1729;  was  with  De  Villiers  at  Green  Bay  in  1730,  in  which  year  he 
married  Marie  Coulon  de  Villiers.  "  Douville "  was  also  interpreter  at 
Fort  Frontenac  in  1743.  If,  as  seems  probable,  it  was  Philippe  who  was 
at  the  conference  in  Quebec  in  1748  —  Alexandre  being  among  the  Miamis 
in  that  year  —  then  it  was  probably  Philippe  whose  connection  with  the 
trade  on  Lake  Ontario  is  noted  in  the  text.  The  confusion  is  increased 
by  the  record  that  in  1728  "  Rouville  la  Saussaye"  was  the  lessee  of  the 
trading-post  at  Toronto;  but  whether  there  is  any  relation  between  Rouville 
la  Saussaye,  the  trader,  and  Douville  de  la  Saussaye,  the  soldier,  I  leave 
for  future  determination,  or  those  who  may  have  more  exact  information 
in  the  matter. 


ACTIVITIES  OF  JONCAIRE  185 

the  foot  of  the  13ay  of  Quinte.  "  They  leave  to  winter  in  all 
their  new  forts,"  says  Chaplain  Durant,  "  but  one  Store  Keeper 
and  two  Soldiers."  Here  indeed,  was  service  for  the  King, 
a  living  immurement  in  the  wilderness ;  yet  the  careers  of  men 
like  Joncaire  show  how  alluring  this  forest  life,  in  spite  of  all 
its  hardships  and  hazard,  proved  to  many  a  soldier  of  New 
France. 

Joncaire  set  out  from  Montreal,  about  the  middle  of  October, 
1720,  to  winter  at  Niagara.  His  two  canoes  were  laden  deep 
with  goods  from  the  King's  storehouse.  His  escort  numbered 
twelve  soldiers,  but  at  Frontenac  six  were  left  behind.  There 
were  evidently  delays,  at  Frontenac  or  beyond,  for  as  he  skirted 
the  south  shore  of  Ontario  his  journey  was  stopped  by  ice 
thirty-five  leagues  from  the  Niagara.  He  put  in  at  the  Gene- 
see  and  wintered  there. 

Into  what  extremity  this  failure  of  expected  relief  plunged 
the  occupants  of  the  bark  cabin  at  the  mouth  of  the  Niagara 
gorge,  we  arc  not  told.  La  Corne  does  not  appear  to  have 
wintered  there,  for  Durant  records  that  "  the  Sieur  D'Ouville 
had  stayed  there  alone  with  a  soldier,  waiting  the  Sieur  de 
Joncaire."  Probably  the  friendship  of  the  Senecas  preserved 
them,  but  Joncaire's  failure  to  arrive  in  the  fall  with  goods 
to  trade  kept  the  storehouse  empty  till  spring,  to  the  no  small 
embarrassment  of  the  French  and  disappointment  of  the  In- 
dians. 

There  exist  of  this  episode,  as  of  many  others  that  form 
our  history,  two  official  accounts,  one  French,  the  other  Eng- 
lish. In  the  abstract  of  Messrs,  de  Vaudreuil  and  Begon's 
report  on  Niagara  for  1720,  it  is  set  forth  that  "  the  English 
had  proposed  to  an  Iroquois  chief,  settled  at  Niagara,  to  send 
horses  thither  from  Orange,  which  is  130  leagues  distant  from 
it,  for  the  purpose  of  transmitting  goods,  and  to  make  a  per- 
manent settlement  there,  and  offered  to  share  with  him  what- 
ever profits  might  accrue  from  the  speculation.  The  English 
would,  by  such  means,  have  been  able  to  secure  the  greatest  part 
of  the  peltries  coming  down  the  lakes  from  the  upper  coun- 
tries; give  employment  not  only  to  the  Indians  who  go  up 
there  and  return  thence,  but  also  to  the  French."  The  reader 


186  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

will  note  the  delightful  impudence  of  this  last  proposition. 
The  report  continues :  "  They  [the  French]  have  a  store 
there  well  supplied  with  goods  for  the  trade;  and  have,  by 
means  of  the  Indians,  carried  on  there,  up  to  the  present  time 
and  since  several  years  ago,  a  considerable  trade  in  furs  in 
barter  for  merchandise  and  whisky.16  This  establishment 
would  have  enabled  them  to  purchase  the  greater  part  of  the 
peltries  both  of  the  French  and  Indians  belonging  to  the  upper 
country."  It  is  clear  that  the  English  were  about  to  attempt 
an  establishment  on  the  Niagara,  had  not  the  French  fore- 
stalled them. 

It  is  not  easy  to  reconcile  the  various  dates,  or  lack  of  dates, 
in  the  English  and  French  records  of  this  establishment.  It 
was  on  October  26,  1719,  that  Vaudreuil  sent  Joncaire  to  carry 
to  the  Five  Nations  a  favorable  word  from  the  King,  and  the 
presents  above  mentioned.  He  was  charged  to  tell  the  Senecas 
that  if  the  English  came  to  Niagara  they  —  the  Senecas  — 
should  fall  on  them  and  seize  their  goods.  It  was  agreed  with 
Begon  that  La  Corne  the  younger  and  an  engage  should  spend 
the  winter  of  1719-20  on  the  Niagara,  and  that  they  were  to 
open  trade  the  following  spring,  on  the  Royal  account.  Their 
presence,  it  was  argued,  would  keep  the  English  away,  and 
help  the  trade  at  Frontenac. 

An  Indian  reported  at  Albany,  in  July,  1719,  that  the 
French  were  building  at  Niagara.  He  had  been  at  the  Seneca 
Castle  called  Onahe,  within  a  day's  journey  of  Niagara,  and 
there  met  some  Ottawas  who  had  asked  the  French  at  Niagara, 
how  they  came  to  make  a  fort  there  without  asking  leave  of 
the  Five  Nations ;  and  the  French  had  replied,  "  they  had  Built 
it  of  their  Own  Accord,  without  asking  any  Bodys  Leave  arid 
Design'd  to  keep  Horses  and  Carts  there  for  Transportation  of 
Goods,"  etc.17 

Either  the  date  of  the  above  is  too  early  by  a  year,  or  it 
refers  to  a  structure  built  some  time  in  1719,  which  was  suc- 
ceeded by  the  larger  Magazin  Royal,  which,  according  to  ex- 
plicit accounts,  both  French  and  English,  was  built  in  the  lat- 

'1®"Eau  de  vie  <Je  grain." 

"  X.  Y.  Col.  MSS.'in  State  Library,  Albany,  Vol.  LXT,  fol.  157. 


ACTIVITIES  OF  JONCAIRE  187 

tcr  part  of  May,  1720.  In  the  report  sent  by  Vaudreuil  and 
Begon  to  the  Minister,  under  date  of  October  26,  1720,  it  is 
stated  that  "  on  the  representation  made  by  the  Sieur  de  Jon- 
caire,  lieutenant  of  the  troops,  as  to  the  importance  of  this 
post  and  of  the  quantity  of  furs  which  could  be  traded  for 
there,  they  are  making  there  a  permanent  establishment  ("  un 
ctablissement  scdcntaire ").  We  have  charged  him  to  have 
built  there  by  the  savages  a  picketed  house  ("  une  maison  de 
pieux  ")  to  which  [construction]  he  pledged  them  last  spring." 
The  same  report  recites  the  visit  to  the  Scnecas  of  Messrs. 
Schuyler  and  Livingston,  their  names  appearing  —  grotesquely 
distorted,  as  is  usually  the  case  with  English  or  Dutch  names 
in  the  old  French  documents  —  as  "  le  Sr.  Jean  Scliult,  com- 
mandant, et  le  Sr.  L.  Euiston,  maire  a  Orange  "/  The  bark 
house  was  obviously  surrounded  by  palisades  —  a  strong,  high 
fence  of  sharpened  stakes.  If  the  text  of  the  French  report 
may  be  accepted,  the  Indians  themselves  bore  a  willing  hand  in 
its  construction. 

Durant's  memorial  makes  no  mention  of  a  visit  at  Magazin 
Royal  in  behalf  of  the  English,  but  there  was  one.  The  work 
on  the  bark  house  under  the  Niagara  escarpment  was  no  sooner 
begun  than  word  of  it  was  carried  eastward  through  the  lodges 
and  villages  of  the  Six  Nations.  In  April  of  1720,  Myndert 
Schuyler  and  Robert  Livingston,  Jr.,  had  set  out  from  Albany 
for  the  Seneca  Castle,  to  hold  one  of  the  conferences  which  the 
Commissioners  of  Indian  Affairs  so  frequently  ordered  at  this 
period.  Here,  May  16th,  they  took  the  Indians  to  task  be- 
cause the  French  "  are  now  buissey  at  Onjagerae,  which  ought 
not  to  be  Consented  to  or  admitted."  The  English  emissaries 
went  on  to  remind  their  Seneca  brethren  of  the  promises  that 
had  been  made  '"  about  twenty-two  years  agoe  to  secure  their 
Lands  and  hunting  Places  westward  of  them  ...  to  the 
Crown  of  great  Brittain  to  be  held  for  you  and  Your  Poster- 
ity." The  French,  they  continued,  "  are  now  buissy  at 
onjagera  which  in  a  Manner  is  the  only  gate  you  have  to  go 
through  towards  your  hunteing  places  and  the  only  way  the 
farr  Indians  conveniently  came  through  where  Jean  C'oeurs 
[Joncaire]  with  some  men  are  now  at  work  on  building  a 


188  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

block  house  and  no  Doubt  of  a  Garrison  by  the  next  Year 
whereby  you  will  be  so  Infenced  that  no  Room  will  be  Left  for 
you  to  hunt  in  with  out  Liberty  wee  know  that  in  warr  time 
they  could  never  overcome  you,  but  these  proceedings  in  build- 
ing so  near  may  be  their  Invented  Intrigues  to  hush  you  to  sleep 
whilst  they  take  possession  of  the  Heart  of  Your  Country  this 
is  Plainly  seen  by  us  therefore  desire  you  to  Consider  it  rightly 
and  sent  [send]  out  to  spy  what  they  are  doing  at  onjagera 
and  prohibite  Jean  Coeur  building  there,  for  where  they  make 
Settlements  they  Endeavour  to  hold  it  so  that  if  he  takes  no 
notice  thereof,  after  given  in  a  Civil  way,  further  Complaints 
may  be  made  to  your  brother  Corlaer,  who  will  Endeavour  to 
make  you  Easy  therein." 

This  ingenuous  appeal  having  been  emphasized,  according 
to  custom,  by  giving  a  belt  of  wampum,  the  sachems  retired 
to  think  it  over.  Six  days  later  —  May  22d  —  the  sachems 
of  the  Senecas,  Cayugas  and  Oneidas  assembled,  and  in  behalf 
of  their  own  peoples  and  of  the  Mohawks  and  Onondagas,  spoke 
to  the  English  delegates  at  length  and  with  the  customary 
Indian  grandiloquence.  Regarding  the  French  intrusion  at 
Niagara  they  said,  in  part : 

"  You  have  told  us  that  you  were  Informed  the  French 
were  building  a  house  at  Onjagera  which  As  you  perceive  will 
prove  prejudiciall  to  us  &  You.  Its  true  they  are  Either 
yett  building  or  it  is  finished  by  this  time  wee  do  owne  that 
some  Years  agoe  the  Five  Nations  gave  Trongsagroende 
lerondoquet  &  onjagera  and  all  other  hunting  Places  west- 
ward to  ye  Crowne  to  be  held  for  us  and  our  posterity  Least 
other  might  Incroach  on  us  then  we  also  partition  the  hunt- 
ing Places  between  us  and  the  french  Indians  but  since  then 
they  are  gone  farr  within  the  Limits  and  the  french  got  more 
by  setling  Trongsagroende  and  we  must  Joyne  our  Opinion 
with  yours  that  if  wee  suffer  the  french  to  settle  at  onjagera, 
being  the  only  way  to  ward  hunting,  wee  will  be  altogether  shut 
up  and  Debarred,  of  means  for  our  lively  hood  then  in  deed 
our  Posterity  would  have  Reason  to  Reflect  on  us  there  fore 
to  beginn  in  time  wee  will  appoint  some  of  our  men  to  go  thither 
to  onjagera  and  Desire  you  to  send  one  along  so  that  in  the 


ACTIVITIES  OF  JONCAIRE  189 

name  of  the  five  Nations  Jean  Coeur  may  be  acquainted  with 
the  Resolve  of  this  Meeting  and  for  biden  to  proceed  any  further 
building,  but  ordered  to  take  down  what's  Erected." 

Having  thus  confirmed  the  English  in  their  assertions,  and 
pledged  their  own  friendship,  the  sachems  through  their  spokes- 
man gave  the  belt  of  wampum  and  passed  on  to  other  matters. 
At  the  end  of  the  conference  three  chiefs  were  appointed  to  go 
to  Niagara  to  expostulate  with  the  French  ;  and  Messrs.  Schuy- 
ler  and  Livingston  deputed  to  go  with  them  their  Dutch  in- 
terpreter, Lawrence  Claessen. 

This  man,  whose  name  in  the  old  records  is  variously  spelled 
Claessen,  Clawsen,  Clausen,  Claese,  Clase  or  Clace,  acquires 
some  importance  in  our  record  from  the  fact  that  he  is  the 
first  representative  of  English  interests  known  to  have  visited 
the  Niagara  in  other  than  a  clandestine  way.  With  the  ex- 
ception of  Rooseboom  and  MacGregorie  and  perhaps  one  or  two 
others  of  their  class,  he  is  the  first  white  man,  not  of  France  or 
in  the  French  interest,  known  to  have  reached  the  region. 
Moreover  he  is  a  typical  example  of  a  class  of  men  who  at  this 
period  were  indispensable  alike  to  the  English  and  French. 
lie  WHS  an  Indian  interpreter,  a  go-between,  the  medium  of  com- 
munication between  the  English  and  the  Indians.  Though  not 
a  soldier,  he  was  for  his  people  in  other  ways  the  counterpart 
of  Joncaire  among  the  French ;  and  although  his  experiences 
appear  to  have  been  less  hazardous  and  romantic  than  were 
that  adventurer's,  yet  his  life,  for  a  score  of  years  before  we 
find  him  at  Niagara,  had  been  successfully  devoted  to  a  calling 
which  demanded  exceptional  knowledge  and  tact,  and  which 
brought  no  lack  of  arduous  experiences. 

As  early  as  1700  he  was  serving  the  English  as  interpreter 
in  their  councils  and  treaties  with  the  Five  Nations.  lie  was 
apparently  even  then  no  no\ice  at  the  trade,  for  the  next  year 
the  Mohawks  gave  him  about  three  acres  on  small  islands  in 
the  Mohawk,  in  proof  of  their  gratitude  because  of  his  fair- 
ness as  an  interpreter.  lie  was  a  witness,  July  19,  1701,  to 
the  deed  by  which  the  Five  Nations  conveyed  their  beaver- 
hunting  grounds  to  King  William.  It  i>  a  strange  document, 
containing  among  the  attached  signatures  the  pictographic 


190 


AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 


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ACTIVITIES  OF  JONCAIRE  191 

deuces  of  sachems  of  each  of  the  Five  Nations;  and  quit-claim- 
ing to  the  English  Crown  all  the  country  of  the  Iroquois  south 
of  Lakes  Ontario  and  Huron,  on  both  sides  of  Lake  Erie  and 
as  far  west  as  Lake  Michigan,  "  including  likewise,"  specifies 
the  deed,  "  the  great  falls  oakinagaro "  [Niagara].  This 
vast  area,  400  miles  wide  by  800  miles  long,  an  empire  in  itself 
and  now  the  seat  of  millions  of  people,  the  home  of  commerce 
and  of  culture,  but  then  the  wilderness  which  the  Iroquois 
claimed  as  his  hunting-ground,  and  because  of  its  resources  of 
fur  the  bone  of  contention  between  Europe's  greatest  Powers, 
was  absolutely  given,  with  every  rivet  and  clamp  of  legal  verbi- 
age which  the  language  of  the  law,  redundantly  profuse  then 
as  now,  could  command  — "  freely  and  voluntarily  surrendered 
delivered  up  and  forever  quit-claimed  .  .  .  unto  our  great 
Lord  and  Master  the  King  of  England  called  by  us  Corachkoo 
and  by  the  Christians  William  the  third  and  to  his  heires  and 
successors  Kings  and  Queens  of  England  for  ever."  And  the 
sole  compensation  for  this  transfer  was  to  be  liberty  on  the 
part  of  the  Five  Nations  to  hunt  as  they  pleased  in  this  domain, 
and  to  be  protected  by  the  English  in  the  cxcricise  of  that  right. 

From  this  date  on  for  many  years  Clacssen  continued  to  act 
in  a  confidential  capacity  and  as  interpreter.  The  colonial 
records  afford  many  glimpses  of  him.  In  1710  he  was  sent 
to  the  Senecas'  country,  "  to  y°  five  Nations  to  watch  ye 
motions  of  yp  French  &  to  perswade  those  Indians  to  give  a 
free  passage  to  y1'  farr  Indians  through  their  Countrey  to 
come  here  to  Albany  to  trade." 

On  this  mission,  at  Onondaga,  July  17th,  he  encountered 
Longueuil  and  Joncaire.  lie  was  among  the  Indians  at  Onon- 
daga again  in  the  spring  of  1711.  Two  years  later  we  find 
him,  with  Ileinricli  Hanson  and  Captain  Johannes  Bleccker, 
holding  an  important  conference  at  the  same  great  rende/vous. 

Whenever  the  Indians  went  to  Albany  to  confer  —  and  that 
was  often,  at  this  period  —  Claessen  was  summoned  to  inter- 
pret. On  such  occasions,  the  communications  from  red  men 
to  Governor,  or  vice  versa,  were  made  through  successive  in- 
terpretations. Thus  it  was  customary,  on  these  occasions,  for 
the  sachem  to  make  his  speech,  paragraphed,  so  to  say,  by  the 


192  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

gift  of  wampum  belts.  This  speech  Claessen,  who,  perhaps 
alone  of  all  the  white  men  present,  understood  the  Five  Na- 
tions dialects,  repeated,  more  or  less  accurately,  in  Dutch. 
Usually  it  was  Robert  Livingston,  secretary  for  the  Indian 
Commissioners,  who  knew  both  Dutch  and  English,  but  not 
Indian,  who  translated  what  Claessen  had  said,  for  the  benefit 
of  Governor  Burnet,  who  understood  only  English. 

Sometimes  there  was  still  further  interposition  of  lingual 
media.  Such  was  the  case  at  a  conference  at  Albany  in  1722 
between  Governor  Spotswood  of  Virginia  and  the  Indians.  On 
this  occasion  there  was  speech-making  by  the  Delawares. 
Here  Claessen's  knowledge  failed  him,  so  another  interpreter, 
James  Latort,  was  called  in,  to  convert  Delaware  into  Mohawk 
or  Dutch. 

More  tedious  yet  was  the  work  of  the  interpreters  at  a  con- 
ference held  at  Albany  in  1723  between  the  commissioners  of 
Indian  affairs  and  representatives  of  western  tribes  —  the 
"  farr  Indians  "  of  the  quaint  old  records.  Claessen  could 
not  understand  them,  but  a  Seneca  who  had  been  a  prisoner 
among  them  could,  and  interpreted  to  Claessen,  who  in  turn 
interpreted  to  the  commissioners ;  thus  after  three  transforma- 
tions the  message  reached  a  record  in  English.  The  wonder 
is,  not  that  there  were  so  many  misunderstandings,  but  —  if 
one  may  judge  from  the  dispatch  of  business  —  that  there  were 
so  few. 

There  were  other  interpreters  employed  by  the  English  at 
this  period ;  among  them  Captain  Johannes  Bleecker  and  Jan 
Baptist  van  Eps,  a  man  who  was  sent  on  important  missions 
among  the  Senecas,  and  may  not  unlikely  have  found  his  way 
to  the  Niagara ;  his  name,  in  some  of  the  reports  of  Indian 
speches,  appears  rather  startlingly  as  John  the  Baptist. 
There  was  even  a  Dutch  woman,  Hilletje  van  Olinda,  employed 
as  "  interpretress  "  at  Albany  in  1702.  But  none  other  in  his 
time  seems  to  have  borne  so  important  a  part  as  Lawrence 
Claessen.  In  1726  he  was  one  of  the  witnesses  to  a  trust  deed 
by  which  the  Onondagas,  Cayugas  and  Senecas  confirmed  to 
Governor  Burnet,  as  representative  of  King  George,  the  quit- 
claim deed  which  the  Five  Nations  had  executed  in  1701.  The 


ACTIVITIES  OF  JONCAIRE  193 

terms  of  the  latter  instrument  are  not  so  sweeping  as  in  the 
former  case.  The  country  deeded  is  from  the  Salmon  River, 
in  Oswego  County,  New  York,  to  Cleveland,  Ohio,  a  strip  sixty 
miles  wide  back  into  the  country  from  the  water  front,  and 
carefully  specifying  that  it  includes  "  all  along  the  said  lake 
[Erie]  and  all  along  the  narrow  passage  from  the  said  lake 
to  the  Falls  of  Oniagara  Called  Cahaquaraghe  and  all  along 
the  River  of  Oniagara  and  all  along  the  Lake  Cadarackquis," 
etc.18  Small  wonder,  in  view  of  these  sessions  in  good  faith, 
that  the  English  vigorously  contested  all  French  establish- 
ment on  the  Niagara. 

Two  years  after  the  signing  of  this  deed,  Claessen  was  in- 
vited to  Oswego,  to  mark  out  a  land  grant  for  the  King.  "  We 
know  none  so  proper,"  said  the  sachems  to  Governor  Mont- 
gomery, "  as  Lawrensc  Clausen  the  Interpreter,  who  is  one  of 
us  And  understands  our  Language."  "  I  consent,"  replied  his 
Excellency,  "  that  Lawrence  Clausen  the  Interpreter  go  up 
with  you  as  you  desire  to  mark  out  the  Land  you  arc  to  give 
his  Majesty  at  Oswego,  And  as  he  [the  King]  is  your  kind 
father  I  expect  you  will  give  him  a  Large  tract."  This  was 
on  October  1,  1728.  As  late  as  November  23,  1730,  we  find 
him  just  returning  to  Albany  from  Onondaga  and  reporting  to 
the  Indian  Commissioners  the  latest  news  regarding  Joncairc, 
which  will  be  noted  presently  as  we  trace  the  career  of  that 
worthy. 

In  all  the  thirty  years  during  which  we  have  sight  of  Law- 
rence Claessen,  no  service  on  which  he  was  employed  is  re- 
corded with  greater  detail  than  that  which  brought  him  to  the 
Frenchmen's  "  Mngnzin  Koyal  "  on  the  banks  of  the  Niagara 
in  the  spring  of  1720.  In  his  journal  of  that  visit  he  has  left  a 
pretty  vivid  account  of  the  wav  in  which  his  mission  sped. 

After  a  week  of  travel  from  the  Seneca  town  Claessen  and 
the  three  Seneca  chiefs,  on  the  last  day  of  Mav,  arrived  at 
the  "  Magaz'm  HoynL"  They  found  it  a  good-sized  house, 
"  Fortv  Foot  long  and  thirty  wide,"  but  it  was  not  ample 
enough  to  afford  them  a  hospitable  reception.  It  was  occu- 
pied, according  to  the  English  account,  by  a  French  merchant 

is  From  the  original  roll  in  the  oflicc  of  the  Seeretarv  of  State,  Alhanv. 


194  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

and  two  other  Frenchmen  —  one  of  them  Douville.  Joncaire 
does  not  appear  to  have  been  there  when  Claessen  arrived. 
The  French  account  says  that  the  Englishman  (Claessen)  told 
La  Corne,  "  whom  M.  Begon  appointed  to  trade  at  that  place, 
to  withdraw,  and  that  they  were  going  to  pull  down  that  house. 
La  Corne  answered  them  that  he  should  not  permit  them  to  do 
so  without  an  order  from  Sieur  de  Joncaire,  who  on  being  ad- 
vised thereof  by  an  Indian,  went  to  the  Senecas  to  prevent  them 
consenting  to  that  demolition." 

The  argument  between  Claessen  and  La  Corne  was  a  heated 
one.  Claessen  told  the  latter  he  had  been  sent,  in  company 
with  the  sachems,  "  to  tell  you  that  the  Five  Nations  have 
heard  that  you  are  building  a  house  at  Octjagara  [Niagara], 
and  the  said  sachims  having  considered  how  prejudicial  that 
a  French  Settlement  on  their  Land  must  consequently  prove 
to  them  and  their  Posterity  (if  not  timely  prevented)  where- 
fore they  have  sent  me  and  them  to  acquaint  you  with  their 
resolution  that  it  is  much  against  their  inclination  that  any 
buildings  should  be  made  here  and  that  they  desire  you  to  de- 
sist further  building  and  to  leave  and  demolish  what  you  have 
made." 

The  French  merchant  was  at  no  loss  for  defense.  "  We 
had  leave,"  he  replied,  "  from  the  young  fighting  men  of  the 
Senecas  to  build  a  house  at  Niagara.  My  master  is  the  Gov- 
ernor of  Canada.  He  has  posted  me  here  to  trade.  This 
house  will  not  be  torn  down  until  he  orders  it." 

The  three  sachems  with  Claessen  scouted  the  idea  that  the 
young  fighting  men  of  their  nation  had  given  or  could  give 
permission  for  the  French  to  establish  themselves  on  the  bank 
of  the  Niagara.  "  We  have  never  heard."  they  said,  "  that 
an}7  of  our  young  men  had  given  such  leave  for  making  any 
building  at  Octjagara." 

Claessen  did  not  tarry  long.  Returning  by  way  of  Ironde- 
quoit,  he  there  encountered  new  evidence  of  French  enterprise 
in  a  blacksmith  whom  the  Governor  of  Canada  had  sent  among 
the  Senecas  to  work  for  them  "  gratis,  he  having  compassion 
on  them  as  a  father,"  and  in  three  French  canoes  loaded  with 
goods,  bound  up  for  Niagara.  By  June  7th  he  was  back  at 


ACTIVITIES  OF  JONCAIRE  195 

Seneca  Castle,  where  he  called  together  the  chiefs  and  young 
warriors  for  a  council.  When  they  met,  Joncaire  appeared 
with  them.  Claessen  told  the  assembly  what  had  been  said  at 
Niagara ;  whereupon  the  Indians,  old  sachems  and  young  war- 
riors alike,  joined  in  a  disclaimer.  The  French,  they  said, 
had  built  the  house  at  Niagara  without  so  much  as  asking  their 
leave,  and  they  desired  "  that  their  brother  Corlaer  may  do 
his  endeavour  to  have  y°  said  House  demolisht  that  they  may 
preserve  their  Lands  and  Hunting."  They  suggested  that  the 
English  at  Albany  write  to  the  Governor  of  Canada  and  insist 
that  the  house  be  destroyed. 

Here  Joncaire  broke  in.  He  had  listened  to  the  Senecas' 
disclaimer,  but  now  he  assumed  a  taunting  tone.  Interrupt- 
ing Claessen  lie  exclaimed:  "You  seek  to  have  the  house  at 
Niagara  torn  down  only  because  }-ou  are  afraid  that  you  — 
you  traders  at  Albany  —  will  not  get  any  trade  from  this 
Seneca  nation  and  from  the  Indians  of  the  far  West.  When 
we  keep  our  house  and  people  at  Niagara  we  can  stop  the  Sen- 
ecas and  the  Western  Indians  too  from  trading  with  you. 
That  is  the  trouble  with  you.  You  arc  not  afraid  that  we 
keep  the  land  from  the  Senecas." 

**  The  French,"'  disputed  Claessen,  "  have  made  this  settle- 
ment at  Niagara  to  encroach  on  the  Five  Nations,  to  hinder 
them  in  their  hunting,  and  to  debar  them  from  the  advan- 
tage they  should  reap  by  permitting  a  free  passage  of  the 
Western  Indians  through  the  Seneca  castles.  What  is  more, 
you  impose  on  these  people  in  your  trade.  You  sell  them  goods 
at  exorbitant  rates.  For  a  blanket  of  strouds  you  demand 
eight  beavers,  for  a  white  blanket  six,  and  other  goods  in  pro- 
portion ;  whereas  they  may  have  them  at  Albany  for  half  those 
prices."  And  the  assembled  Indians  gravely  affirmed  that  it 
was  so. 

Lawrence  Clacsscn  went  back  to  Albany,  leaving  Joncaire 
for  the  time  victorious.  lie  prevailed  on  the  vacillating  Sen- 
ecas not  only  to  spare  but  to  protect  the  house  by  the  Niagara 
rapids,  arguing  that  thrv  themselves  would  profit  from  it, 
and  emphasi/ing  the  argument,  we  may  be  sure,  by  a  discreet 
bestowal  of  gifts. 


196  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

For  the  Senccas,  this  occurrence  was  but  another  step  to- 
wards an  inevitable  end.  For  the  French,  it  was  a  great 
achievement.  The  adroit  Joncaire  had  crowned  the  efforts  of 
more  than  forty  years ;  for  ever  since  La  Salle  had  built  his 
first  house  on  the  river  the  French  had  longed  for  its  perma- 
nent possession.  The  achievement  won  for  Joncaire  new  ex- 
pressions of  regard.  In  the  report  of  the  Governor  and  In- 
tendant  for  1720  one  may  read :  "  No  one  is  better  qualified 
than  he  [Joncaire]  to  begin  this  establishment  [Niagara], 
which  will  render  the  trade  of  Fort  Frontenac  much  more  con- 
siderable and  valuable  than  it  has  ever  been.  He  is  a  very 
excellent  officer;  the  interpreter  of  tht  Five  Iroquois  Nations, 
and  has  served  thirty-five  years  in  the  country.  As  all  the 
Governors-General  have  successfully  employed  him,  they  have 
led  him  to  hope  that  the  Council  would  be  pleased  to  regard 
the  services  he  will  have  it  in  his  power  to  render  at  this  con- 
juncture." 19 

lo  Local  tradition  fixes  the  site  of  Magazin  Royal  on  the  present  Bridge 
Street  at  Lewiston,  a  few  rods  east  of  the  tracks  of  the  International  Rail- 
way Company,  and  within  a  stone's  throw  of  the  bank  of  the  Niagara. 
Here,  at  the  south  side  of  the  road,  just  at  the  edge  of  the  steep  slope  that 
stretches  to  the  upper  heights,  one  may  yet  trace  the  outlines  of  what  ap- 
pears to  have  been  a  well,  and  of  the  foundation  of  a  building;  scarcely 
however  of  Joncaire's  cabin,  but  very  plausibly  of  a  house  which  later  oc- 
cupied the  site,  regarding  which  the  late  Rev.  Joshua  Cooke,  for  many 
years  a  resident  of  Lewiston,  wrote  to  the  present  chronicler:  "I  have  a 
particular  interest  in  the  spot,  for  in  1805,  eighty-one  years  after  Joncaire 
built,  my  grandfather  built  his  pioneer  home  on  the  spot  —  the  first  white 
man's  home  on  the  Niagara,  after  Joncaire."  The  old  ferry  road  followed 
the  general  direction  of  the  present  Bridge  Street,  but  ran  a  little  to  the 
north  of  it,  in  a  ravine  of  which  a  portion  still  remains,  at  its  junction 
with  the  river.  Within  recent  years  the  building  of  the  electric  road  along 
the  river  bank,  the  reconstruction  of  the  suspension  bridge  at  this  point, 
and  the  cutting  and  grading  incident  to  this  work,  have  greatly  changed 
things  thereabouts. 


CHAPTER  XII 

NIAGARA  AND  THE  WEST 

EARLY  TRAVEL  BY  THE  NIAGARA  ROUTE  —  FIRST  WHITE  WOMEN  OF 
THE  WEST  —  THE  BRITISH  COVET  THE  NIAGARA  TRADE  —  THE 
HUGUENOT  SPY  OF  THE  NIAGARA. 

THE  reader  who  has  followed  our  narrative  thus  far  may 
long  since  have  concluded  that  it  deals  only  with  strife  and 
contention.  Such  in  truth  is  its  chief  character  to  the  very 
end  ;  hut  a  few  glimpses  of  the  region  in  its  more  peaceful  as- 
pect may  be  had.  On  the  Niagara  the  French  made  no  attempt 
at  settlement,  save  in  very  limited  fashion  under  the  protec- 
tion of  Fort  Niagara  and  at  the  upper  and  lower  ends  of  the 
portage.  Here  were  never  laid  the  hearthstones  of  a  peace- 
ful community,  nor  is  there  found  in  the  documents  of  the  time 
any  serious  proposition  for  the  establishment  of  a  settlement 
on  the  Niagara  which  might  in  a  few  years  raise  its  own  grain, 
vegetables  and  live  stock,  and  become  measurably  self-support- 
ing, as  was  Detroit.  The  development  of  that  settlement 
brought  to  the  Niagara  as  travelers  many  who  were  to  be 
prominent  in  the  early  annals  of  the  City  of  the  Straits.  No 
doubt  the  real  aristocracy  of  Detroit  —  if  so  typically  demo- 
cratic a  community  has  an  aristocracy  —  may  be  made  up  of 
descendants  of  the  50  soldiers  and  50  Canadians  who  went  with 
Cadillac  in  1701  ;  and  to  that  list  would  belong  the  wives  of 
Cadillac  and  Alphonse  de  Tonty  who  with  their  retinue  passed 
up  the  Niagara  the  following  year. 

From  about  the  close  of  the  Seventeenth  century  the  Niagara 
route  to  the  West  was  more  and  more  used,  superseding  the 
more  difficult  way  of  the  Ottawa  River.  That  northern  route 
was  followed,  although,  it  is  recorded,  against  his  will,  by 
Antoinc  de  La  Mothe-Cadillac  in  1701,  when  with  his  fine  com- 
pany lie  went  to  found  the  present  city  of  Detroit.  Leaving 
La  Chine  May  5th,  the  banks  of  the  Detroit  were  reached  July 
2ith.  The  Founder  of  Detroit  has  no  place  in  the  story  of 

197 


198  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

the  Niagara,  save  that,  in  later  years,  he  passed  this  way. 
When  in  the  summer  of  1701  his  wife  resolved  to  join  him  in 
the  West,  she  chose  to  go  by  the  Niagara  route.  She  was 
Marie-Therese  Guyon-Dubuisson,  a  Quebec  maiden,  daughter 
of  a  well-to-do  merchant.  She  married  La  Mothe-Cadillac  in 
1687,  and  is  often  mentioned,  in  the  documents  of  the  time, 
as  Madame  de  La  Mothe.  Setting  out  from  Quebec,  Sep- 
tember 10,  1701,  with  her  little  son,  she  was  joined  at  Mont- 
real by  the  wife  of  Alphonse  de  Tonty,  who  before  marriage 
was  Anne  Picote.  With  a  few  other  women,  wives  of  soldiers 
and  servants,  and  an  escort  of  Canadians,  they  came  on  to 
Fort  Frontenac,  where  they  passed  the  winter.  As  soon  as 
the  ice  allowed,  in  the  spring,  they  followed  the  south  shore 
of  Ontario  and  entered  the  Niagara.  There  were  no  horses 
on  the  great  portage,  and  unless  Madame  Cadillac  was  car- 
ried, sedan-chair  fashion,  or  drawn  on  a  hand-sled,  a  device 
much  used  on  the  portages,  she  and  her  women  companions 
must  have  climbed  the  Lewiston  heights  and  plodded  on  foot 
the  eight  miles  of  forest  path  that  brought  them  to  the  river's 
marge  above  the  cataract.  The  white  men  of  the  party  and 
the  Indian  boatmen  carried  the  canoes  and  supplies ;  and  re- 
embarking,  all  passed  up  the  river  into  Lake  Erie  and  van- 
ished to  the  westward.  There  very  likely  was  at  least  one 
night's  sojourn  on  the  river,  and  a  visit  to  the  Falls;  but  we 
have  no  record  of  it. 

Madame  Cadillac,  Madame  Alphonse  de  Tonty  and  their  at- 
tendants were  the  first  white  women  on  the  Niagara,  the  first  to 
pass  through  any  of  the  Great  Lakes. 

Very  few  women  come  into  our  story,  from  first  to  last. 
Rarely  is  it  possible  to  trace  the  influence  of  feminine  associa- 
tion in  all  the  annals  of  this  region  under  the  French.  All 
the  more  conspicuous,  therefore,  becomes  this  visit  of  the  First 
Woman  of  the  West,  one  who  by  all  accounts,  was  lovely  in 
person,  energetic  and  capable  to  an  exceptional  degree.  A 
pleasant  glimpse  of  her  is  afforded  by  a  letter  from  the  Jesuit 
Father  Joseph  Germain,1  who  wrote  to  Cadillac  at  the  time 
of  the  departure  of  his  wife  on  her  great  journey:  "  Every- 

i  Germain  to  Cadillac,  Quebec,  Aug.  25,  1701. 


NIAGARA  AND  THE  WEST  199 

one  here  admires  the  magnanimity  of  these  two  ladies  who  cer- 
tainly have  courage  to  undertake  so  laborious  a  journey  to 
go  and  join  their  husbands,  without  fearing  the  great  difficul- 
ties or  the  fatigue  or  other  inconveniences  which  must  be  en- 
dured by  roads  so  long  and  so  rough  for  persons  of  their 
sex.  Well!  Sir:  is  it  possible  to  show  more  sincere  conjugal 
affection  or  a  firmer  attachment?  Some  one  said  pleasantly 
to  them  the  other  day  that  they  would  pass  for  heroines.  But 
on  some  other  ladies,  more  fastidious,  saying  to  Madame  de 
La  Mothc,  in  order  to  dissuade  her  from  this  journey,  that 
that  would  be  well  if  they  were  going  to  a  pleasant  and  fer- 
tile country,  where  they  could  always  get  good  company,  as 
in  France,  but  they  could  not  understand  how  people  could 
make  up  their  minds  to  go  to  an  uncultivated  and  uninhabited 
place  where  they  could  not  but  have  a  very  dull  time  of  it  in 
such  great  solitude,  she  very  discreetly  replied  that  a  woman 
who  loves  her  husband  as  she  ought  to  do  has  no  attraction 
more  powerful  than  his  society  in  whatever  place  it  may  be ; 
all  the  rest  should  be  indifferent  to  her;  those  are  her  opinions." 

If  the  ladies  of  Quebec  were  astonished  at  the  temerity  of 
Mesdames  Cadillac  and  Tonty,  the  Iroquois  of  the  Niagara 
were  much  more  so.  "  It  is  certain,"  wrote  Cadillac,2  "  that 
nothing  [ever]  astonished  the  Iroquois  so  greatly  as  when  they 
saw  them.  You  could  not  believe  how  many  caresses  they  of- 
fered them,  and  particularly  the  Iroquois  who  kissed  their  hands 
and  wept  for  joy,  saying  that  French  women  had  never  been 
seen  coming  willingly  to  their  country."  They  reasoned  that 
the  proclaimed  peace  was  indeed  sincere,  since  women  of  this 
rank  came  amongst  them  with  confidence. 

Robert  Reaume,  Joseph  Trotier  dit  Ucsruissaux,  and  Tous- 
saint  Pothier  (lit  Laverdure,  were'  engaged  by  written  con- 
tract, September  5,  1701,  to  escort  Mme.  dc  La  Mothe-Cadil- 
lac,  Mme.  Alphonsc  de  Tonty  and  their  children,  from  Montreal 
to  Detroit,  and  at  the  same  time  to  accompany  Francis  Mary 
Picote  de  Belcstre  '•  and  his  equipages  "  on  the  same  trip. 
Robert  Reaume  did  not  settle  in  Detroit  but  his  sons  Hyacinth 
and  Peter  did. 

-Cadillac   to  Pontchartruin,  Quebec,  Sept.  x?j,   1TOJ. 


200  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

Happy  dames,  to  make  that  momentous  journey  under  the 
escort  of  servitors  whose  very  cognomens  spoke  to  them  of 
rushing  streams  and  forest  greenery !  Favored  of  Fortune  was 
Madame  Cadillac,  thus  to  pioneer  her  sex  into  that  Great 
West,  Avhich  has  now  become  —  may  we  not  say  —  more  than 
any  other  part  of  the  globe,  the  Woman's  world ! 

Cadillac  himself  was  no  stranger  to  the  Niagara  region, 
first  passing  through  the  river,  apparently,  in  1702.  Al- 
though he  first  went  to  Detroit  by  the  Ottawa  route,  he  sub- 
sequently passed  back  and  forth  through  the  Lower  Lakes,  more 
than  once.  Of  one  experience,  in  the  summer  of  1706, 
his  letters  hold  some  record.  Returning  from  Quebec,  while 
on  Lake  Ontario,  four  or  five  boats  did  not  get  on  so  well  as 
the  others,  and  finally  disappeared.  Cadillac  sent  one  of  his 
men,  Mons.  de  Figuer,  to  find  them  and  say  that  Cadillac  would 
wait  for  them  at  "  the  fort  of  the  Sables,"  that  is,  Irondequoit, 
a  convenient  stopping-place,  but  not  a  fortification.  There 
he  did  wait,  eight  days.  Finally  he  went  on,  with  a  Seneca 
escort  of  26  men,  led  by  a  chief,  Touatacoute.  Reaching  De- 
troit, Cadillac  wrote  to  the  Marquis  de  Vaudreuil,  asking  that 
the  deserters  be  arrested :  "  I  hope  you  will  send  back  the 
wives  of  Chanteloup  and  La  Roche  de  St.  Ours ;  also  the  men 
St.  Jean  and  Parisien  of  my  company,  with  their  wives,  these 
two  rascals  having  deserted  or  taken  a  holiday  out  of  mere 
wantonness."  He  further  says  that  these  men,  in  coining 
through  Lake  Ontario,  had  put  in  at  the  bay  of  Goyagouin  — 
that  is,  Sodus,  "  and  visited  the  large  village  of  Sonontoua 
to  take  letters  to  the  Jesuit  who  resides  there,  who  apparently 
charged  them  to  take  the  answers  to  Montreal."  The  Iro- 
quois  had  promised  Cadillac  that  they  would  escort  the  missing 
Frenchmen  "  up  to  the  portage  at  Niagara  ";  St.  Jean  did  in- 
deed present  himself  at  Fort  Sables,  while  the  others  apparently 
went  down  the  river.  Cadillac  thought  they  deserved  to  pass 
the  winter  in  prison,  but  wanted  them  sent  back  to  Detroit  in 
the  spring.3 

s  These  and  other  details  are  given  in  a  letter  of  Cadillac  to  dr  Vaud- 
reuil, Aujr.  27,  170(i;  Ki'c,  aho,  account  of  a  "talk"  between  de  Vaudreuil 
and  the  Senecas,  Sept.  4.,  1706. 


NIAGARA  AND  THE  WEST  201 

Among  the  things  which  Cadillac  thought  essential  to  the 
welfare  of  Detroit  was  the  destruction  of  Fort  Frontenac,  a 
new  fort  to  be  built  "  25  leagues  lower  down  at  a  place  called 
La  Palette"  [sic:  Galette],  near  present  Ogdensburg;  and, 
to  be  rid  of  the  difficulties  of  the  Niagara  portage.  On  this 
point  a  document  of  1708,  summarizing  certain  letters  of  Cadil- 
lac, says:  "It  would  be  necessary  to  make  a  junction  be- 
tween Lake  Erie  and  Lake  Ontario.  He  says  that  he  knows, 
for  that  [purpose],  a  way  and  a  canal  which  has  remained  un- 
known to  everyone  else  until  now."  lie  may  have  had  the 
Grand  River  and  western  end  of  Lake  Ontario  in  mind ;  if  not, 
one  is  at  a  loss  to  know  what  he  did  mean.  Two  years  later 
the  Sieur  d'Aigremont,  reporting  on  conditions  at  Lake  posts, 
wrote : 

When  I  passed  the  portage  at  Niagara  it  did  not  appear  to  me 
that  any  communication  between  Lake  Ontario  or  Lake  Erie  could 
be  made  that  could  avoid  this  portage,  and  if  M.  de  la  Mothe  knows 
a  means  of  doing  so,  I  think  he  is  the  only  man  in  the  country  who 
does.  But,  My  Lord,  even  if  it  were  true  that  a  communication  with 
Lake  Ontario  or  Lake  Erie  could  be  made  it  could  only  be  done  with 
very  great  expense  and  it  would  not  follow  from  that,  that  Detroit 
would  be  able  to  obtain  from  Montreal  any  help  it  might  need  in 
case  of  war  with  the  Iroquois,  for  such  help  could  not  even  be  given 
to  Fort  Frontenac,  which  has  to  be  passed  through  on  the  way  to 
Detroit.4 

We  know  from  his  own  letters  that  the  Jesuit  missionary 
Francois  Vaillant  "  was  on  the  Niagara  in  1701.  Writing  to 
Cadillac  from  Fort  Frontenac,  September  23,  1701,  the  priest 
speaks  of  meeting  '"  Mine,  de  la  Mothe,"  the  wife  of  Cadillac, 
and  adds:  "On  Lake  Erie  I  met  Quarante  Sols,  the  Huron. 
.  .  .  As  regards  the  Iroquois  whom  we  met  on  the  way,  we 
did  not  find  them  much  opposed  to  your  settlement;  some  even 
testified  to  me  their  joy  that  when  going  hunting  on  Lake  Erie, 
they  will  find  at  Detroit  fin  exchange]  for  the  skins  of  the 

<  D'Aitrremont  to  Pontchartrain.  Oct.  IS,  1710. 

•"'The  name  often  occurs  as  Valiant  or  even  Valliant;  hut  the  priest's 
own  siirnature  is  as  above;  more  fully,  Francois  Yaillant  de  (lueslis.  He 
went  to  Canada  in  1(>7();  died  at  Moulins,  Sept.  _H,  171S. 


202  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

roebuck,  stag  and  hind,  all  they  want."  As  fear  of  the  Iro- 
quois  had  been  one  reason  for  the  tardy  use  of  the  Niagara 
route,  Father  Vaillant's  report  was  reassuring.  The  Huron 
chief  Quarante  Sols  —  in  plain  English,  Forty  Sous  —  seems 
to  have  been  constantly  passing  up  and  down  the  Lakes,  and 
beyond  question  was  a  familiar  and  influential  figure  in  the 
Niagara  region.  Father  Marest,  at  Mackinac,  October  8, 
1701,  wrote  that  Father  Vaillant  "  was  much  mortified  thai 
he  was  not  able  to  pass  this  way,  either  going  to  Detroit  or 
returning,"  evidence  that  the  priest  returned  to  the  western 
mission  by  the  way  of  Niagara  and  Lake  Erie.  Many  another 
Jesuit  of  those  early  years  undoubtedly  knew  our  region  of 
whose  passing  or  temporary  sojourn  on  the  Niagara  no  rec- 
ord is  preserved.  Among  them  was  Father  Claude  Aveneau, 
who  appears  to  have  passed  through  Lake  Erie  to  his  Miami 
mission  on  the  St.  Joseph,  where  he  served  from  about  1702 
to  about  1708.  One  might  conjecture  that  Point  Abino  on 
the  north  shore  of  Lake  Erie  near  the  Niagara,  formerly  spelled 
"  Abeneau "  (and  several  other  ways),  derives  its  name 
from  some  association  with  this  missionary ;  but  proof  is 
lacking. 

In  the  58  years  that  followed  the  establishment  of  Detroit, 
prior  to  the  English  conquest,  there  was  a  constant  migra- 
tion thither.  After  the  first  few  years,  practically  all  of  it 
was  by  the  Niagara  route.  Under  the  protection  of  the  mid- 
summer Convoy,  at  first  one  or  two  families  ventured  the 
hazards  of  wilderness  and  of  wave,  to  join  husband,  father  or 
sweetheart  in  the  West.  As  the  Niagara  portage  was  made 
safer,  and  travel  facilities  improved,  this  class  of  travel  greatly 
increased.  From  the  precious  records  of  Ste.  Anne's  church, 
Detroit,  running  back  unbroken  to  that  beginning  year  of 
1701,  and  from  numerous  public  or  family  documents,  the 
patient  antiquarian  might  compile  a  long  list  of  the  families 
who  thus  passed  the  Niagara  portage  in  the  first  half  of  the 
Eighteenth  century.  It  was  the  first  well-defmcd  migration 
into  the  Middle  West,  and  it  was  for  the  most  part  of  fine  qual- 
itv.  Much  has  been  said  of  the  lawless  and  evil  character  of 
forest  rangers,  unscrupulous  traders  and  loose-living  boatmen 


NIAGARA  AND  THE  WEST  203 

and  soldiers,  in  this  region ;  one  may  not  conclude  that  such 
was  the  character  of  all.  Many  who  figure  here  were  of  the 
other  social  extreme.  Most  of  the  officers  of  the  military,  and 
many  a  civilian,  called  by  duty  to  these  lakes,  bore  names 
long  honored  among  the  noblesse  of  France.  Many  a  younger 
son  of  a  noble  family  turned  to  service  in  America,  tempted 
by  the  certainty  of  adventure  or  the  chance  of  preferment  and 
distinction,  if  not  by  the  substantial  offers  of  land-grants  and 
bounties  with  which  Louis  XIV  lured  them  on.  Thus  it  came 
about  that  even  as  the  feudal  system  was  dying  out  in  France 
it  was  revived  and  continued,  in  some  of  its  features,  in  Can- 
ada, by  the  granting  to  prominent  colonists  or  soldiers  of 
achievement,  of  tracts  of  land,  called  seigneuries.  Most  of 
these,  on  the  St.  Lawrence  and  its  tributaries,  were  of  a  half 
league  water  front,  with  a  depth  of  two  or  three  leagues.  To 
these  "  seigneuries  "  were  given  the  ancestral  or  place  names 
with  which  the  family  had  been  identified  in  France.  As  the 
seigneuries  were  divided  for  sons  and  sons'  sons,  so  seigncurial 
designations  multiplied,  so  that  brothers  figure  in  our  history 
by  different  appellations,  and  sons  lose  their  patronymic  in 
common  usage.  The  royal  grant  to  Cadillac  was  not  called 
a  seigneury,  nor  do  we  find  any  on  the  Lakes,  save  La  Salle's 
at  Kingston  and  one  to  the  Chevalier  Le  Gardeur  de  Repent- 
igny,  at  Sault  Ste.  Marie.  No  grant,  however  called,  was  made 
on  the  Niagara;  but  Cadillac  in  1703  asked  that  one  be  made 
to  him  on  the  north  shore  of  Lake  Erie : 

The  Grand  river,  thus  called  in  Lake  Erie,  near  to  the  end  of 
this  Lake  ...  is  supplied  on  its  banks  and  in  the  interior  with 
large  numbers  of  mulberry  trees,  the  ground  also  is  perfectly  suited 
to  them.  If  you  will  have  the  goodness  to  grant  me  six  leagues 
frontage  on  both  sides  and  as  much  in  depth,  with  the  title  of 
Marquis,  and  with  higher,  middle  and  lower  jurisdiction,  with  hunt- 
ing, fishing  and  trading  rights,  I  will  establish  a  silk  industry  by 
sending  for  suitable  people  from  France  for  that  purpose  who  would 
bring  the  necessary  number  of  silk  worms.  If  you  grant  me  this 
favor,  I  will  take  steps  to  bring  tliem  over  by  the  first  ships  so  that 
they  may  arrive  here  before  winter.'1 

c  Cadillac  to  Pontchartrain,  An  jr.  31,  1703. 


204      AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

Note  has  been  made  of  the  journey  of  Mesdames  La  Mothe- 
Cadillac  and  Tonty  by  the  Niagara  route  in  1702.  In  the 
years  following,  wives,  children,  and  other  relatives  of  offi- 
cers, soldiers  and  tradesmen  at  Detroit,  similarly  passed, 
usually  with  the  Convoys.  Sometimes  the  relatives  went  with 
the  officers,  a  great  family  party;  and  if  there  were  hardship 
and  danger,  we  may  be  sure  there  were  gayety  and  good  cheer 
as  well.  So  went,  in  1705  or  '06,  the  family  of  Peter  Maillet 
and  his  stepson  John  Francis  Peltier;  in  1706,  Peter  Robert, 
moving  his  family  west  two  years  later ;  in  1707,  Stephen 
Campeau ;  Michel  and  Jacques  Campeau,  about  1710 ;  and  in 
other  early  years,  Cuillerier  de  Beaubien,  Trotier  des  Ruis- 
seaux,  Chesne  St.  Onge,  Godefroy  de  Roquetiade,  Godefroy  de 
Marboeuf,  Charles  and  Pierre  Barthe,  Gode  de  Marentette  — 
the  list  might  be  greatly  extended. 

In  1706,  after  Cadillac  had  been  given  exclusive  control 
of  the  settlement  on  the  Detroit,  there  was  a  notably  large 
migration  thither  from  the  old  St.  Lawrence  towns.  One  list 7 
enumerates  48  persons  who  with  their  possessions  went  in  this 
summer  to  share  the  fortunes  of  the  new  colony.  Beyond  ques- 
tion, most  of  them  journeyed  by  the  Niagara  route.  In  May, 
1706,  two  brothers,  Jean  and  Paul  Lescuyer,  brought  10  head 
of  cattle  and  three  horses,  the  first  domestic  animals  known 
to  have  been  taken  west  of  Lake  Ontario. 

The  greatest  travel  to  the  westward,  in  any  one  year  dur- 
ing the  period  of  French  control  in  our  region,  was  in  1749. 
A  record  of  1750  mentions  the  passing  of  12  families,  composed 
of  57  persons,  up  the  Niagara,  bound  for  Detroit. 

Most,  perhaps  all  of  the  commanders  at  Fort  Pontchartrain 
(or  Detroit)  after  Cadillac,  and  at  many  other  western  posts, 
passed  up  and  down  the  Niagara  and  through  our  lakes,  some 
of  them  many  times.  Some  of  these  belong  to  the  story  of 
the  Niagara  as  well  as  the  Detroit,  and  will  be  duly  noted. 
When  Picote  de  Belestre  went  out  to  his  post  in  1712,  his 
wife  Catherine  went  with  him.  She  was  of  the  family  Trotier 
de  Beaubien,  and  a  former  husband  was  Jean  Cuillerier.  These 

7  Compiled  by  C.  M.  Burton;  in  Mich.  Hist.  Colls.  XXXIII,  271. 


NIAGARA  AND  THE  WEST  205 

are  ancestors  of  a  numerous  line,  prominent  to  this  day  in  De- 
troit and  vicinity. 

Notes  of  this  sort  might  be  greatly  multiplied;  but  these 
may  serve  to  remind  the  reader  that  all  was  not  strife  on 
the  Niagara  in  those  distant  days;  may  help  somewhat  to 
fill  out  the  picture  with  reminders  of  the  ever-swelling  stream 
of  passers-by,  many  of  whom  were  of  noble  lineage,  many  more 
of  whom  were  to  found  large  and  worthy  families  in  the  heart 
of  America.  It  was  usually  the  son,  sometimes  the  grandson 
of  the  original  settler  from  France,  who  made  this  second  mi- 
gration. Most  of  those  who  went  to  the  Detroit  and  else- 
where in  the  West,  in  the  early  years  of  the  Eighteenth  cen- 
tury, were  born  on  the  lower  St.  Lawrence  —  Quebec,  Three 
Rivers,  Montreal ;  but  their  parents  as  a  rule  were  born  in  Nor- 
mandy or  neighboring  provinces. 

That  it  was  the  day  of  small  things,  in  trade  as  in  war, 
may  be  illustrated  by  a  statement  of  provisions,  munitions  and 
merchandise  sent  to  the  Lake  Ontario  posts  —  Frontenac, 
Niagara,  head  of  the  lake,  and  Bay  of  Quinte  —  for  the  year 
1722-23.  The  total  Government  outlay  for  the  three  sorts 
of  supplies  was  29,800  livres,  17  sous,  6  deniers.  Furs  from 
these  points,  not  including  Quinte,  in  1722,  netted  18,178 
livres ;  in  1723,  22,732  livres.  This  of  course  was  by  exchange. 
In  the  same  season,  wages  of  employees  at  Frontenac  came 
to  900  livres ;  the  storekeeper  at  Niagara  received  400  livres 
per  annum  and  the  gunsmith  the  same.  The  pay  of  six  sol- 
diers was  180  livres  each.  In  the  two  years  named,  there  was 
charged  to  transportation  on  Lake  Ontario,  1050  livres.  The 
total  expense  of  administering  these  posts,  1722-23,  was  35,- 
2101i,  17s,  6d;  total  receipts  from  sale  of  peltries  40,9111i, 
8s,  6d  —  a  profit  of  570H,  11s  — or  a  little  over  $1000  a 
year!  This  was  the  trade  for  which  Joncairc  labored  and 
lived  with  the  Iroquois,  for  which  the  Niagara  was  occupied, 
for  which  two  great  Towers  contended! 

The  day  of  small  tilings,  it  indeed  was  ;  but  of  great  things 
potentially.  Far  greater  figures  the  fur  trade  was  presently 
to  vield,  although  the  Eighteenth  century  did  not  think  in 


206  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

millions,  as  the  Twentieth  is  compelled  to.  A  handful  of  sol- 
diers could  seize  half  a  continent;  another  handful  could  dis- 
possess them.  Nothing  is  clearer,  in  our  study,  than  that 
France  did  much,  with  a  small  force.  The  significance  of 
events  and  achievements  was  independent  of  numbers. 

Projects  for  lake  navigation,  of  which,  for  some  years  after 
the  disastrous  ending  of  La  Salle's  venture,  nothing  is  heardy 
naturally  enough  were  revived  in  connection  with  the  estab- 
lishment of  Detroit  An  unsigned  and  undated  document,  prob- 
ably by  Cadillac,  sets  forth  that  if  a  settlement  were  made 
on  the  Detroit,  "  it  has  been  determined  to  build  boats  at 
Katarakoui  to  convey  the  necessary  articles  as  far  as  Niagara 
where  a  fort  will  be  constructed  in  order  to  keep  carters  there 
who  will  carry  out  the  portage  of  them ;  they  will  be  received 
by  other  boats  which  will  convey  them  here,"  that  is,  to  De- 
troit. Another  document,  on  the  necessity  of  a  post  on  the 
Detroit,  is  endorsed :  "  These  plans  are  to  have  barges  at 
Fort  Frontenac  for  navigating  Lake  Ontario,  and  at  the  fort 
that  would  be  established  for  navigating  the  lakes  above  the 
Fall  of  Niagara."  But  control  of  the  Niagara  portage  was 
essential,  and  that  was  slow  in  coming.  Detroit  had  existed 
20  years  before  Joncaire  gained  a  permanent  lodging  on  the 
Niagara,  and  was  a  quarter  century  old  before  the  building 
of  Fort  Niagara  offered  some  encouragement  to  Detroit  and 
other  western  posts  that  shipping  facilities  by  way  of  Lake 
Erie  might  be  improved.  Although  sundry  proposals  are 
found,  for  the  construction  of  sail  vessels  above  the  Falls,  noth- 
ing of  the  sort  was  ever  accomplished  by  the  French,  who  down 
to  the  Conquest  used  nothing  larger  on  Lake  Erie  than  canoes 
and  bateaux,  some  of  them,  it  is  true,  large  for  such  craft, 
and  fitted  with  sails.  Detroit  seems  to  have  made  no  effort  to 
build  even  the  smallest  of  schooners.  The  Griffon  was  not  only 
the  first  deep-water  bottom  sailed  by  the  French  on  Lake  Erie, 
but  it  was  the  last. 

The  British  plans  for  getting  a  foothold  on  Lake  Erie  and 
the  Niagara  at  this  time  are  revealed  in  various  documents. 
A  "  Representation  of  the  Lords  Commissioners  for  Trade 
and  Plantations  to  the  King  upon  the  State  of  His  Majesties 


NIAGARA  AND  THE  WEST  207 

Colonies  and  Plantations  on  the  Continent  of  North  America," 
dated  September  8,  1721,  sets  forth  at  length  that  it  would  be 
of  great  advantage  to  build  a  fort  in  the  country  of  the  Seneca 
Indians,  near  the  Lake  Ontario,  "  which,  perhaps,  might  be 
done  with  their  consent  by  the  means  of  presents,  and  it  should 
the  rather  be  attempted  without  loss  of  time,  to  prevent  the 
french  from  succeeding  in  the  same  design,  which  they  are  now 
actually  endeavouring  at."  We  have  already  alluded  to  other 
forms  in  which  this  design  was  shown.  It  reappears  in  various 
ways,  in  numerous  documents  and  publications  of  the  time. 

There  ensued  between  the  Marquis  de  Vaudreuil  in  behalf 
of  Canada,  and  Governor  Burnet,  an  exceedingly  spirited  cor- 
respondence ;  one  of  those  epistolary  dialogues  —  duels,  rather 
—  which  by  their  exhibitions  of  human  nature  do  so  enliven 
the  record  of  the  long  strife  for  supremacy  in  America.  Jon- 
caire  had  left  Montreal  in  September,  1720,  for  the  house  by 
the  Niagara  rapids.  He  carried  with  him  a  generous  stock 
of  articles  of  trade,  powder,  lead  and  brandy,  for  he  had 
heard,  among  the  Senecas  the  preceding  autumn,  that  the  Eng- 
lish were  coming  to  carry  on  trade  at  Niagara.  He  was  to 
stay  on  the  Niagara  and  among  the  Senecas  until  the  follow- 
ing June  and  had  orders  to  pillage  the  English,  if  they  ap- 
peared. Governor  Burnet,  down  in  New  York,  was  quickly 
apprised  of  it,  and  made  known  his  mind  to  Vaudreuil.  He 
began  with  compliments  worthy  of  a  Erench  courtier.  He  had 
come  to  his  post  in  September  last,  he  wrote,  with  an  inclina- 
tion to  salute  his  neighbor  to  the  North  by  a  cordial  notifi- 
cation of  his  arrival.  "  I  heard  such  a  high  eulogium  of  your 
family  and  of  your  own  excellent  qualities  that  I  flattered  my- 
self with  a  most  agreeable  neighborhood,  and  was  impatient  to 
open  a  correspondence  in  which  all  the  profit  would  be  on  my 
side.  But  I  had  not  passed  two  weeks  in  the  province  when 
our  own  Indians  of  the  Eive  Nations  came  to  advise  me,  that 
the  French  were  building  a  post  in  their  country  at  Niagara ; 
that  Sieur  de  Joncaire  was  strongly  urging  them  to  abandon 
the  English  interest  altogether  and  join  him,  promising  them 
that  the  Governor  of  Canada  would  furnish  better  land  near 
Chambly,  to  those  who  would  remove  thither;  and  would  up- 


208  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

hold  the  rest  against  the  new  Governor  of  New  York,  who 
was  coming  to  exterminate  them ;  .  .  .  that  an  effort  was  mak- 
ing to  persuade  them  to  close  the  passage  through  their  coun- 
try, to  the  English,  in  case  the  latter  should  disturb  the  post 
at  Niagara,  and  that  M.  de  Longueuil  had  gone  thither  for 
that  purpose,  and  to  complete  the  seduction  of  the  Indians 
from  their  ancient  dependence  on  Great  Britain."  He  explains 
why  he  has  not  waited  for  instructions  from  the  Court  before 
writing  in  the  matter,  and  continues :  "  You  will  perceive,  by 
the  Treaty  of  Utrecht,  that  all  the  Indians  are  to  be  at  lib- 
erty to  go  to  trade  with  one  party  and  the  other ;  and  if  ad- 
vantage be  taken  of  the  post  at  Niagara  to  shut  up  the  road 
to  Albany  to  the  Far  Indians,  it  is  a  violation  of  the  Treaty 
which  ought  justly  to  alarm  us,  especially  as  that  post  is  on 
territory  belonging  to  our  Indians,  where  we  were  better  enti- 
tled to  build  than  the  French,  should  we  deem  it  worth  the 
trouble."  He  charges  Vaudreuil  with  unseemly  haste  in  seizing 
"  disputed  posts " ;  renews  his  expressions  of  regret,  and 
adroitly  adds  that  he  believes  that  "  most  of  these  disorders  are 
due  to  this  Joncaire,  who  has  long  since  deserved  hanging  for 
the  infamous  murder  of  Hontour  [Montour]  which  he  com- 
mitted. I  leave  you  to  judge  whether  a  man  of  such  a  charac- 
ter deserves  to  be  employed  in  affairs  so  delicate." 

Canada's  Governor  replied,  seriatim,  to  all  the  counts  which 
Burnet  undertook  to  score  against  him.  Burnet,  he  said,  was 
"  the  first  English  Governor-General  who  has  questioned  the 
right  of  the  French,  from  time  immemorial,  to  the  post  of 
Niagara,  to  which  the  English  have,  up  to  the  present  time, 
laid  no  claim."  He  declared  that  the  French  right  there  had 
continued  since  La  Salle's  first  occupancy ;  that  Fort  Denon- 
ville  was  given  up  in  1688  because  of  sickness,  "  without  this 
post,  however,  having  been  abandoned  by  the  French " ;  a 
claim  which,  to  say  the  least,  shows  that  Vaudreuil  possessed 
qualifications  that  would  have  made  him  an  adept  in  certain 
occupations  of  the  law.  He  denied  that  there  had  been  any 
dispute  between  the  French  and  Indians  as  to  the  erection  of 
Joncaire's  trading-house,  denied  that  there  was  any  infraction 
of  the  treaty  of  peace,  or  that  French  occupancy  of  the  Ni- 


NIAGARA  AND  THE  WEST  209 

agara  interfered  in  the  least  with  the  Western  Indians  who 
could  still  carry  their  trade  to  the  English  if  they  saw  fit.  As 
to  Joncaire,  Governor  Burnet  was  assured  that  he  had  been 
misinformed  as  to  that  useful  man's  character  and  qualities, 
"  as  he  possesses  none  but  what  arc  very  good  and  very  meri- 
torious, and  has  always  since  he  has  been  in  this  country  most 
faithfully  served  the  King.  It  was  by  my  orders  that  he  killed 
the  Frenchman  named  Montour,  who  would  have  been  hanged 
had  it  been  possible  to  take  him  alive  and  to  bring  him  to  this 
colony."  The  letter  concludes  with  formal  expressions  of  es- 
teem, and  the  rather  superfluous  hope  that  the  explanations 
would  be  satisfactory. 

He  himself  had  the  satisfaction,  the  next  year,  of  having 
his  conduct  approved  by  the  King.  "  His  Majesty  has  ap- 
proved of  the  measures  M.  de  Vaudreuil  adopted  to  prevent  the 
execution  of  the  plan  formed  by  the  English  of  Orange  to  de- 
stroy the  establishment  at  Niagara;  and  of  the  steps  he  took 
to  dissuade  the  Iroquois  from  favoring  them  in  that  enterprise, 
and  thereby  to  hinder  the  English  undertaking  anything 
against  that  post  or  against  those  of  the  Upper  Country.  His 
Majesty  recommends  him  to  endeavor  to  live  on  good  terms 
with  the  English,  observing,  nevertheless,  to  maintain  always 
His  Majesty's  interests." 

A  document  of  1720, s  on  the  need  of  a  trading-post  at 
Niagara,  makes  the  interesting  statement  that  the  English  had 
proposed  to  an  Iroquois  chief,  residing  at  Niagara,  to  send 
him  horses,  if  he  would  turn  the  trade  to  them,  and  to  divide 
profits  with  him.  It  accuses  the  English  of  sending  20  hogs- 
heads of  rum  annually  to  the  Senecas,  besides  what  they  for- 
warded through  the  Senecas  to  tribes  west  of  the  Niagara.  A 
few  weeks  later,0  the  Ereneh  had  word  that  the  English  were 
coming  with  200  men  to  demolish  Joncairc's  trading-post,  and 
that  four  of  the  Iroquois  nations  had  joined  with  them  to  do 
this.  Vaudreuil  wrote  to  Peter  Schuyler,  who  commanded  at 

8  "  M  ('moire  sur  la  necf^.^iti'  <!<•  fain'  uu  Efabllnsemcnt  an  hat  <fn  I'ortm/p 
flf  Xiat/ara  a  dott.r  /lYf/r*   tin   Luc   Ontario  pour  y  fairc   la   traittc  ai'cc   les 
<'.•>,"  etc.      It   hears   date   Oct.    Jii,    17 JO. 
uniiril  tie   Marine,"  Jan.    1,   17J1. 


210  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

Albany  in  the  absence  of  the  Governor,  asking  as  to  the  truth 
of  this  report,  and  making  the  usual  defense  of  French  claims 
to  the  Niagara.  Belief  in  this  alliance  against  them  was  evi- 
dently general  and  genuine  among  the  French,  for  in  April 
we  find  Joncaire  himself  informing  the  Baron  de  Longueuil 
that  the  Oneidas,  Onondagas,  Cayugas  and  Mohawks  had 
agreed  to  join  the  English  in  an  assault  on  the  house  by  the 
Niagara  rapids,  but  that  the  Senecas  had  refused  to  join  them. 
Vaudreuil  promptly  issued  orders  (April  18,  1721)  for  an 
expedition  to  proceed  to  Niagara,  to  hold  a  conference  with 
the  Indians  there,  to  show  them  that  it  was  to  their  interest  to 
maintain  the  house  "  for  which  they  have  asked,  and  which  they 
helped  to  build,"  and  not  permit  the  English  to  make  any  estab- 
lishment on  the  river.  This  conference  ended,  he  was  to  pro- 
ceed to  the  Onondagas,  taking  Joncaire  with  him.10 

A  spectator,  on  May  19,  1721,  looking  lakeward  from  the 
high  bank  where  now  old  Fort  Niagara  keeps  impotent  guard, 
would  have  seen,  swiftly  skirting  the  shore  from  the  eastward, 
a  flotilla  of  King's  boats  and  bark  canoes,  some  crowded 
with  soldiers,  others  laden  deep  with  merchandise.  Not  in 
many  a  year  had  so  imposing  a  company  come  to  the  Niagara. 
The  lower  reaches  of  the  river  are  quickly  accomplished,  and 
as  the  voyagers  make  landing  below  Magazin  Royal,  they  re- 
ceive hearty  welcome  from  Chabert  Joncaire,  surrounded  by 
delighted  and  greedy  men,  women  and  children  from  the  Seneca 
and  Mississaga  lodges  on  the  river  bank.  The  first  greeting, 
a  deferential  one,  is  for  Charles  Le  Moyne,  Baron  de  Longueuil, 
lieutenant  governor  of  Montreal.  With  him  are  the  Marquis 
dc  Cavagnal,  son  of  the  Governor-General  of  Canada,  Cap- 
tain de  Senneville,  M.  dc  Laubinois,  commissary  of  ordnance. 
Ensign  de  La  Chauvignerie  the  interpreter,  dc  Noyan,  com- 
mandant at  Frontenac,  and  John  Durant,  state  chaplain  at 
that  post.  Each  of  the  three  King's  boats  brought  six  soldiers, 
and  there  were  valets  and  cooks,  so  that  Longucuil's  party 
numbered  twenty-eight  or  more.  Besides  these,  two  bark  ca- 
noes had  each  borne  eight  men  and  a  load  of  merchandise, 
one  destined  for  the  storehouse  at  Niagara,  the  other  for  trade 

10  Corr.  Gin. 


NIAGARA  AND  THE  WEST  211 

among  the  Mi  amis  at  the  upper  end  of  Lake  Eric.  Still  an- 
other canoe  brought,  with  De  Noyan  and  the  chaplain,  four 
soldiers  and  an  Indian. 

For  Longueuil,  it  was,  as  above  indicated,  a  diplomatic  visit 
of  grave  import.  lie  and  La  Chauvignerie  were  also  under  or- 
ders from  the  Court  to  join  Joncaire  at  Niagara  and  go  with 
him  among  the  Senecas  to  distribute  presents  and  thank  them 
for  the  good  will  they  had  shown  the  French  in  permitting  the 
construction  of  Magazln  lioyal.  For  the  Marquis  de  la  Ca- 
vagnal  and  Captain  dc  Senneville,  it  was  largely  a  pleasure 
trip :  they  "  had  undertaken  that  voyage  only  out  of  curiosity 
of  seeing  the  fall  of  the  water  at  Niagara,"  says  Chaplain  Du- 
rant,  thus  indicating  probably  the  first  sight-seeing  tourists,  as 
distinguished  from  all  other  travelers  on  the  Niagara. 

It  was  not  in  the  nature  of  tilings,  however,  that  young  men 
of  the  spirit  and  enterprise  of  Cavagnal  and  Longueuil  should 
rest  content  with  sentimental  gazing.  They  had,  in  fact,  the 
serious  purpose,  in  compliance  with  an  order  laid  upon  them 
by  the  Governor  himself,  "  to  survey  Niagara  and  take  the 
exact  height  of  the  cataract."  This  apparently  had  never  been 
done  before.  It  is  plain,  from  their  wild  guesses  and  exaggera- 
tions, that  neither  Ilennepin  nor  La  Hontan  attempted  it,  nor 
do  they  report  an  attempt  by  any  one  connected  with  the  ex- 
peditions of  La  Salle  or  Denonville. 

It  is  matter  of  regret  that  no  official  report  of  this  first  meas- 
urement of  the  falls  is  known.  We  learn  of  it  from  a  verbal 
interview  which  took  place  in  Albany  five  months  later.  On 
October  10th  of  this  year  the  lion.  Paul  Dudley  of  that  town 
gleaned  some  facts  from  one  Borassaw  —  so  the  English  re- 
port spells  his  name.  This  man  (a  French  Canadian,  prob- 
ably a  boatman  or  possibly  a  trader),  said  he  had  been  at 
Niagara  seven  times,  and  was  there  the  last  May,  when  the 
height  of  the  falls  was  taken  by  Longue  Isle,  St.  Ville  and 
Laubineau  —  in  which  perverse  spelling  of  the  lion.  Paul  Dud- 
ley we  may  recognize  Longueuil,  Captain  de  Senneville  and 
Laubinois.  Thev  used,  the  Frenchman  said,  a  largo  cod-line 
and  a  stone  of  half  a  hundred  weight,  and  they  found  the  per- 
pendicular height  "no  more  than  twenty-six  Fathom;  his 


212  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

Words  were  ringt  et  six  Bras."  This  height,  156  feet,  indi- 
cates that  the  measurement  was  made  at  the  eastern  edge  of  the 
American  Fall,  which  spot,  known  in  our  day  as  Prospect 
Point,  was  undoubtedly  the  natural  and  most  frequented  place 
of  observation,  from  days  immemorial.  The  height  which  de 
Cavagnal  and  his  companions  reported  in  1721,  was  within  a 
few  feet  of  the  height  as  known  today. 

Mons.  "  Borassaw  "  told  still  further  of  Niagara  wonders. 
He  thought  that  if  the  total  descent  of  the  river,  including  the 
lower  rapids,  were  taken  into  account,  the  earlier  reports  of 
the  height  of  the  fall  might  not  be  far  out  of  the  way.  He 
mentioned  the  terrible  whirlpools,  and  the  noise,  which  Mr. 
Dudley  decided  was  not  so  terrible  as  Father  Hennepin  had  re- 
ported, since  one  could  converse  easily  close  by ;  and  dwelt 
especially  upon  "  la  brume,'"  the  mist  or  shower  which  the  falls 
make :  "  So  extraordinary,  as  to  be  seen  at  five  Leagues  dis- 
tance, and  rises  as  high  as  the  common  Clouds.  In  this  Brume 
or  Cloud,  when  the  Sun  shines,  you  have  always  a  glorious 
Rainbow."  The  Canadian's  graphic  account  of  Niagara  phe- 
nomena served  a  good  purpose  in  toning  down  the  earlier  exag- 
gerations ;  but,  reported  Mr.  Dudley,  "  He  confirms  Father 
Hennepin's  and  Mr.  Kellug's  Account  of  the  large  Trouts  of 
those  Lakes,  and  solemnly  affirmed  there  was  one  taken  lately, 
that  weighed  eighty-six  pounds."  n 

Two  or  three  days  12  after  the  arrival  of  Longueuil  and  his 
retinue,  there  came  two  other  canoes ;  one  laden  with  merchan- 
dise bound  for  Detroit ;  in  the  other  were  four  traders  and  the 
famous  Jesuit,  Father  Charlevoix. 

It  was  "  two  o'clock  in  the  afternoon  "  of  May  22d  that 
Charlevoix  reached  the  mouth  of  the  Niagara.  He  had  passed 
the  neglected  waste,  the  site  of  Denonville's  and  La  Salle's 

11  See  "  An  Account  of  the  Falls  of  the  River  Niagara,  taken  at  Albany, 
Oct.   10,  1721,   from   Monsieur   Borassaw,  a  French  native  of  Canada.     By 
the  Hon.  Paul  Dudley,  Esq.,  F.  R.  S.,''  in  Philosophical  Transactions,  Royal 
Soc.,   London,    172J.     Dudley's    record   of   Borassaw    is   also   given    in    Vol. 
Ill,  "The  Gallery  of  Nature  and  Art"  ((>  vols.),  Jd  ed.,  London,  ISIS.     ,SW 
a/50   Vol.   XIII   of  La   Roche's   "  Memoires   liter,   dc   la  Grande  Bretagnc," 
La   Have,   \l-2\-X\. 

12  Durant  says  May  21st;  Charlevoix  says  he  arrived  at  Niagara  on  the 
afternoon  of  May  22<\. — "Journal  Ilistorique,"  Letter  XIV. 


NIAGARA  AND  THE  WEST  213 

earlier  establishments,  not  stopping  until  he  reached  Joncaire's 
cabin  — "  to  which,"  he  wrote  a  few  clays  later,  "  they  have 
beforehand  given  the  name  of  fort:  for  it  is  pretended  that 
in  time  this  will  be  changed  into  a  great  fortress."  There 
were  here  now,  all  told,  some  fifty  Frenchmen,  a  most  distin- 
guished company  to  be  found,  this  May  evening  of  the  year 
1721,  harbored  together  in  a  rough  house  under  the  Niagara 
escarpment  at  the  edge  of  the  rapids.  Here  these  comrades 
in  arms  and  adventure  feasted  together  on  fresh  fish  which 
Seneca  and  Mississaga  boys  brought  them  from  the  river, 
with  roast  venison  or  other  provision  from  the  forest,  well 
prepared  by  Longueuil's  own  cooks  ;  not  forgetting  the  com- 
fort of  Erench  liquors  or  other  luxuries  which  the  traveler  of 
quality  was  sure  to  carry  with  him  into  the  wilderness.  They 
gave  the  priest  a  welcome  at  the  board,  and  he,  being  no  ascetic, 
was  glad  to  join  them.  It  is  a  pleasure  to  conjure  up  the 
jovial  gathering  —  a  rare  occasion  in  a  history  which  usually 
presents  to  the  student  a  dismal  and  distressed  aspect,  often 
deepening  into  tragedy. 

The  Erench  officers  were  extremely  well  satisfied  with  what 
they  found  on  the  Niagara.  A  council  was  held  at  which  the 
Senecas  made  their  usual  facile  promises  and  Joncaire  spoke 
"  with  all  the  good  sense  of  a  Frenchman,  whereof  he  enjoys 
a  large  share,  and  with  the  sublimcst  eloquence  of  an  Iro- 
quoise." 

The  officers  were  to  set  off  on  their  mission  the  next  da}-. 
That  evening  a  Mississaga  Indian  invited  them  to  a  ';  festi- 
val," as  Charlevoix  calls  it ;  and  although  by  this  time  he  was 
not  without  some  acquaintance  with  Indian  ways,  the  priest 
found  it  ';  singular  enough."  As  this  is  the  first  "  festival  "  on 
the  banks  of  the  Niagara  which  has  been  reported  for  us,  the 
reader  may  find  pleasure  in  joining  the  party,  with  the  Jesuit 
historian  for  mentor: 

"  It  was  quite  dark  when  it  began,  and  on  entering  the  cabin 
of  this  Indian,  we  found  a  fire  lighted,  near  which  sat  a  man 
beating  on  a  kind  of  drum:  another  was  constantly  shaking  his 
chicJiicoiir,  and  singing  at  the  same  time.  This  lasted  two 
hours  and  tired  us  very  much  as  they  were  always  repeating 


AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

the  same  thing  over  again,  or  rather  uttering  half  articulated 
sounds,  and  that  without  the  least  variation.  We  entreated 
our  host  not  carry  this  prelude  any  further,  who  with  a  good 
deal  of  difficulty  showed  us  this  mark  of  complaisance. 

"  Next,  five  or  six  women  made  their  appearance,  drawing 
up  in  a  line,  in  very  close  order,  their  arms  hanging  down,  and 
dancing  and  singing  at  the  same  time,  that  is  to  say,  they  moved 
some  paces  forwards,  and  then  as  many  backwards,  without 
breaking  the  rank.  When  they  had  continued  this  exercise 
about  a  quarter  of  an  hour,  the  fire,  which  was  all  that  gave 
light  in  the  cabin,  was  put  out,  and  then  nothing  was  to  be  per- 
ceived but  an  Indian  dancing  with  a  lighted  coal  in  his  mouth. 
The  concert  of  the  drum  and  chichicoue  still  continued,  the 
women  repeating  their  dances  and  singing  from  time  to  time; 
the  Indian  danced  all  the  while,  but  as  he  could  only  be  dis- 
tinguished by  the  light  of  the  coal  in  his  mouth  he  appeared 
like  a  goblin,  and  was  horrible  to  see.  This  medley  of  danc- 
ing, and  singing,  and  instruments,  and  that  fire  which  never 
went  out,  had  a  very  wild  and  whimsical  appearance,  and  di- 
verted us  for  half  an  hour ;  after  which  we  went  out  of  the 
cabin,  though  the  entertainment  lasted  till  morning."  The  dis- 
creet father  naively  adds  to  his  fair  correspondent :  "  This, 
madam,  is  all  I  saw  of  the  fire-dance,  and  I  have  not  been  able 
to  learn  what  passed  the  remainder  of  the  night."  He  specu- 
lates at  length  on  how  the  chief  performer  could  have  held  a 
live  coal  in  his  mouth ;  the  Indians,  he  is  told,  know  a  plant 
which  renders  the  part  that  has  been  rubbed  with  it  insensi- 
ble to  fire,  "  but  whereof  they  would  never  communicate  the  dis- 
covery to  the  Europeans."  With  the  known  properties  of  co- 
caine and  some  other  drugs  in  mind,  this  explanation  would 
seem  in  a  degree  plausible ;  against  the  theory  is  the  fact  that 
the  pharmacopa'a  has  pretty  thoroughly  tested  all  the  plants 
which  the  Indian  of  these  latitudes  could  have  known.  There 
was  probably  a  good  deal  of  charlatanry  about  the  exhibition 
which  so  pu/zled  the  good  priest. 

To  Charlevoix,  the  environs  of  Magazin  Royal  were  far 
from  pleasing.  Most  of  the  modern  visitors  who  resort  to 
the  vicinity  in  thousands  every  summer,  find  the  prospect  un- 


NIAGARA  AND  THE  WEST  215 

commonly  attractive.  Here  the  wild  gorge  of  the  Niagara 
ends,  and  between  alluvial  banks  the  beautiful  river,  as  if 
wearied  with  its  struggles  above,  continues  at  a  slower  pace  to- 
ward the  blue  Ontario.  At  landings,  on  the  Lewiston  or 
Queenston  sides,  are  steamers  with  flags  a-fluttcr  waiting  for 
the  throngs  of  tourists.  Trolley-cars  shuttle  back  and  forth, 
their  road-beds  scarring  and  changing  the  old  slopes.  On  the 
Canadian  side,  cedars  and  other  wild  growth  still  soften  the 
outlines  of  the  heights,  crowned  with  a  noble  Corinthian  shaft 
in  memory  of  the  heroic  Brock.  A  bridge,  the  second  that 
has  swung  across  the  river  at  the  mouth  of  the  gorge,  and,  on 
the  American  side,  a  steam  railroad,  have  still  further  con- 
tributed to  the  obliteration  of  natural  outlines.  But  nothing 
short  of  a  cataclysm  can  destroy  the  beauty  of  the  place.  The 
heights  are  green  and  pleasant,  easily  reached  by  winding  roads, 
crowned  with  grain-fields  and  orchards.  Below  arc  the  quiet, 
picturesque  villages  of  Lewiston  and  Queenston,  and  all  the  low 
country  is  a  garden. 

Not  so  did  it  appear  to  Charlevoix,  who  protested  that 
"  nothing  but  zeal  for  the  public  good  could  possibly  induce 
an  officer  to  remain  in  such  a  country  as  this,  than  which  a 
wilder  and  more  frightful  is  not  to  be  seen.  On  the  one  side 
you  see  just  under  your  feet,  and  as  it  were  at  the  bottom  of 
an  abyss,  a  great  river,  but  which  in  this  place  is  like  a  torrent 
by  its  rapidity,  by  the  whirlpools  formed  by  a  thousand  rocks, 
through  which  it  with  difficulty  finds  a  passage,  and  by  the 
foam  with  which  it  is  always  covered.  On  the  other,  the  view 
is  confined  by  three  mountains  placed  one  over  the  other,  and 
whereof  the  last  hides  itself  in  the  clouds.  This  would  have 
been  a  very  proper  scene  for  the  poets  to  make  the  Titans  at- 
tempt to  scale  the  heavens.  In  a  word,  on  whatever  side  you 
turn  your  eyes,  you  discover  nothing  which  does  not  inspire  a 
secret  horror."  This  shows  a  favorite  form  of  the  exaggera- 
tion to  which  the  priest  was  addicted ;  he  has  elsewhere  described 
mere  oak  trees  as  reaching  "  to  the  clouds." 

After  the  departure  of  the  officers,  he  made  the  long  por- 
tage and  continued  his  journey.  Once  up  the  heights,  he  ac- 
knowledged a  change  of  sentiment.  "  Beyond  those  unculti- 


216  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

vatcd  and  uninhabitable  mountains,  you  enjoy  the  sight  of  a 
rich  country,  magnificent  forests,  beautiful  and  fruitful  hills ; 
you  breathe  the  purest  air,  under  the  mildest  and  most  tem- 
perate climate  imaginable."  His  passage  up  the  Niagara,  it 
will  be  remembered,  was  at  the  end  of  May.  He  visited  the 
falls,  of  which  he  wrote  on  the  spot  a  long  description,  send- 
ing it  back  to  Montreal  by  some  voyageurs  whom  he  met  at 
the  entrance  to  Lake  Erie ;  whence,  on  May  27th,  he  continued 
his  long  canoe  voyage  to  the  westward.  The  goods  for  trade 
and  for  the  post  at  Detroit  were  laboriously  packed  over  the 
portage.  Boatmen  and  Indians,  sweating  and  straining,  bore 
inverted  on  their  shoulders  the  long  bark  canoes,  up  the  steep 
heights  and  along  the  forest  path  to  quiet  water  above  the 
cataract. 

Setting  out  in  the  other  direction,  our  tourist  officers,  with 
De  Noyan,  Laubinois  and  Durant,  departed  on  the  22d,  and 
on  reaching  the  lake  turned  their  prows  westward,  to  make  their 
way  to  Fort  Frontenac  along  the  north  shore  of  the  lake. 

Nearly  a  month  later  Chaplain  Durant,  making  his  way  to 
Albany  with  a  delegation  of  Indians,  met  Joncaire  at  the  mouth 
of  the  Oswego  River.  "  I  asked  him,"  the  chaplain  writes, 
"  what  he  had  done  with  these  savages  upon  the  subject  of  the 
voyage  he  had  undertaken  to  them.  He  answered  me,  *  I  have 
beat  the  Bush  and  Mr.  de  Longueuil  will  take  the  birds.  Our 
voyage  will  do  him  honor  at  the  Court  of  France,'  and  ex- 
plained himself  no  further."  A  little  advanced  on  his  way, 
above  the  Oswego  falls  Durant  met  Longueuil  and  La  Chau- 
vigneric.  "  Have  you  succeeded,"  he  asked,  "  in  engaging  the 
Five  Nations  to  defend  the  Post  of  Niagara?  "  They  an- 
swered that  the  chiefs  of  the  Senecas,  Cayugas,  Oneidas  and 
Onondagas  had  given  them  "  good  words,"  promising  to  tell 
him  further  at  Montreal,  and  hurried  on  towards  Lake  On- 
tario. 

The  French  officers  were  little  inclined  to  make  a  confidant 
of  the  priest,  and  with  good  reason,  for  he  was  then,  as  he  had 
been  at  Niagara,  virtually  a  spy  in  the  English  interest.  John 
Durant  was  a  Recollect,  a  Frenchman  who  claimed  to  be  of 
Huguenot  family,  which,  perhaps,  accounts  for  his  resolve  to 


NIAGARA  AND  THE  WEST  217 

change  both  his  country  and  his  religion.  Apparently  his  Ni- 
agara visit  suggested  the  way  to  him.  He  had  been  stationed 
at  Fort  Frontenac,  and  returned  thither  from  Niagara ;  but 
on  June  13th  he  deserted  that  post  and  his  charge,  and  with 
an  Indian  escort  set  out  for  Albany,  where  he  stated  his  case 
to  Governor  Burnet,  and  gave  him  a  journal  of  what  he  had 
seen  and  heard  at  Niagara.  It  is  from  that  journal  that  a 
portion  of  the  foregoing  narrative  is  drawn.13  Burnet  made 
Durant  the  bearer  of  his  own  report  to  the  Lords  of  Trade  in 
London,  together  with  a  letter  commending  the  author  for  fa- 
vor and  suggesting  reward  for  his  services.  In  due  time  the 
thanks  of  the  Lords  of  Trade  were  sent  back  to  Governor  Bur- 
net,  with  the  assurance  that  "  we  have  done  what  we  could  for 
his  [Durant's]  service,  tho'  not  with  so  much  success  as  we 
cou'd  wish  " ;  14  and  we  hear  no  more  of  Chaplain  Durant,  the 
Huguenot  Spy  of  the  Niagara. 

William  Burnet  was  appointed  Governor  of  the  Colonies  of 
New  York  and  New  Jersey,  April  19,  1720.  He  was  no  sooner 
established  in  his  new  office  than  he  began  a  zealous  campaign 
against  the  advances  of  the  French.  In  his  first  communica- 
tion to  the  Lords  of  Trade,  September  24,  1720,  just  one  week 
after  his  arrival  in  New  York,  he  stated  that  ''  there  may  be 
effectual  measures  taken  for  fortifying  £  securing  the  Fron- 
tier against  the  French,  who  are  more  industrious  than  ever 
in  seducing  our  Indians  to  their  Interests  &  have  built  trad- 
ing Houses  in  their  country."  In  November,  reporting  the 
result  of  the  Legislative  Assembly  of  1720,  he  declared  it  his 
intention  to  build  a  new  fort  at  Niagara  and  a  small  one  at 
Onomlaga.  lie  complained  that  the  French  "  tryed  to  seduce 
the  Sinnekees  "  by  sending  priests  among  them,  grotesquely  de- 
claring this  to  be  a  breach  of  the  treaty  which  required  the 
French  "  not  to  molest  the  Five  Nations  '* !  "  This,''  he  added, 
"  besides  their  continuing  to  fortify  at  Niagara  shews  how  much 
they  take  advantage  of  the  unsettled  state  of  the  limits  between 
the' Crowns."  lr' 

"  ,SW   Durant's  Memorial,  etc.,   X.  Y.  Col.   Does.,  V,  oSS-j!)!, 
11  Lords  of  Trade  to  Burnet,  Whitehall,  June  (i,  17-J-J. 
is  Burnet   to   the   Lords  of  Trade,  June   IS,   17J1. 


218  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

"  When  I  get  the  King's  presents  to  the  Indians,  which  I 
hope  will  be  dispatched,"  he  suggestively  wrote,  "  I  propose 
to  go  into  the  Indian  country  through  the  five  nations  and  give 
them  these  presents  at  their  own  homes  when  I  come  among 
the  Sinnekees  I  will  propose  to  them  my  design  to  build  a  Fort 
at  Niagara  &  leave  a  whole  company  of  souldiers  to  guard  it 
and  be  a  defence  to  the  Indians  against  the  French  and  to  make 
this  succeed  the  better  I  intend  to  give  land  to  the  officers  and 
souldiers  &  to  the  Palatines  and  all  others  that  will  go  there 
by  this  means  in  a  year  or  two  the  country  which  is  very  fruit- 
ful will  maintain  itself  and  be  the  finest  Settlement  in  the 
Province  because  it  is  seated  in  the  Pass  where  all  the  Indians 
in  our  dependance  go  over  to  hunt  and  trade  with  the  Farr 
Indians  it  will  likewise  make  it  practicable  to  have  another 
settlement  above  the  Fall  of  Niagara  where  vessells  may  be 
built  to  trade  into  all  the  Great  Lakes  of  North  America  with 
all  the  Indians  bordering  on  them,  with  whom  we  may  have  an 
immense  Trade  never  yet  attempted  by  us  and  now  carried  on 
by  the  French  with  goods  brought  from  this  Province." 

The  project  does  credit  to  the  Governor's  zeal  and  enthusi- 
asm, but  it  came  to  naught,  so  far  as  Niagara  was  concerned. 
In  a  representation  to  the  King  the  following  year,  the  ad- 
vantage is  urged  of  building  a  fort  "  in  the  country  of  the 
Seneca  Indians,  near  the  Lake  Ontario,  which,  perhaps,  might 
be  done  with  their  consent  by  the  means  of  presents,  and  it 
should  the  rather  be  attempted  without  the  loss  of  time,  to 
prevent  the  French  from  succeeding  in  the  same  design,  which 
they  are  now  actually  endeavoring  at";10  and  the  King's  at- 
tention was  especially  directed  to  Burnet's  Niagara  scheme, 
but  no  royal  encouragement  was  given.  The  Governor  him- 
self, in  his  report  to  the  Lords  of  Trade  for  1721,  reviews  at 
length  the  protest  he  had  made  to  the  Canadian  Governor  be- 
cause of  the  French  establishment  at  Niagara,  but  says  noth- 
ing more  of  his  own  proposition  for  that  river.  He  had  sent 
instead  a  small  company  to  carry  on  trade  at  Irondequoit  Bay. 
The  Palatines,  whom  he  had  considered  as  available  Niagara 
colonists,  had  objected  to  such  an  exile  in  a  distant  and  prob- 

16  "State    of   the    British    Plantations    in    America,"    1721. 


NIAGARA  AND  THE  WEST  219 

ably  hostile  wilderness,  and  had  been  given  their  now  historic 
lands  on  the  Mohawk. 

One  phase  of  the  establishment  at  Irondequoit  must  be  noted 
in  tracing  the  history  of  the  Niagara.  The  company  of  seven 
young  Dutchmen  who  spent  the  winter  of  1721—22  at  Ironde- 
quoit, were  under  the  command  of  Captain  Peter  Schuyler,  Jr. 
To  him  Governor  Burnet  gave  explicit  instructions  for  the 
regulation  of  trade  and  the  control  of  his  party.  In  a  post- 
script to  his  letter  of  instructions  he  wrote: 

"  Whereas  it  is  thought  of  great  use  to  the  British  Interest 
to  have  a  Settlem1  upon  the  nearest  part  of  the  lake  Eree 
near  the  falls  of  lagara  you  are  to  Endeavour  to  purchase  in 
his  Majesty's  name  of  the  Sinnekes  or  other  native  propriators 
all  such  Lands  above  the  falls  of  lagara  fifty  miles  to  the  south- 
ward of  the  said  falls  which  they  can  dispose  of." 

If  young  Schuyler  made  any  efforts  to  make  this  purchase, 
the  record  of  it  is  not  known.  When  he  returned  with  his  band 
to  Albany  in  September,  1722,  Joncaire  still  continued  com- 
mandant at  Magazin  Royal,  and  trade-master  of  the  Niagara 
region. 

In  June,  1722,  the  Lords  of  Trade,  replying  to  Burnet's 
proposition  of  a  year  and  a  half  before,  hoped  that  the  fort 
which  he  would  build  on  the  Niagara  would  effectually  check 
the  efforts  of  the  French  at  that  point,  but  advised  him  to 
"  take  the  consent  of  the  Indian  Proprietors  "  before  he  built. 
A  year  later- — June  25,  1723  —  Burnet  wrote  that  if  he 
could  get  the  Two-per-cent.  Act  confirmed,  he  should  be  "  very 
erncst  to  build  a  Fort  in  the  Indian  Country  among  the  Sinnc- 
kees,"  but  subsequent  events  showed  that  he  no  longer  thought 
Niagara  the  place  for  his  establishment.  The  statement  of  a 
contemporary  English  historian,  that  a  number  of  young  men 
were  at  this  time  sent  into  Western  New  York  '"  as  far  as  the 
Pass  between  the  Great  Lakes  at  the  Falls  of  lagara  to  learn 
the  language  of  these  Indians  &  to  renew  the  Trade,"  1T —  that 
is  to  build  up  a  direct  traffic  with  the  Western  Indians  which 
had  been  neglected  for  the  easier  barter  of  English  goods  to 
the  French  —  apparently  refers  to  the  short-lived  establish- 

17  Coldon's  "  Account  of  the  Trade  of  N'c-w  York,"  IT,1;?. 


220  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

merit  at  Irondcquoit,  already  referred  to.  Evidence  is  lacking 
to  show  that  the  English  or  Dutch  gained  any  foothold  on  the 
Niagara  at  this  period. 

In  1724,  with  due  consent  of  the  "  Indian  Proprietors," 
Burnet  made  his  famous  establishment  at  the  mouth  of  the 
Oswego  River,  which  was  the  foundation  of  the  present  city 
of  Oswego.  At  the  time  no  one  was  dreaming  of  future  cities. 
It  was  but  a  new  move  in  the  century-long  game  for  the  fur 
trade.  One  might  say,  with  some  accuracy,  that  it  was  Jon- 
caire's  trading-house  on  the  Niagara  that  provoked  the  English 
to  make  a  like  establishment,  though  much  better  built,  at  Os- 
wego ;  and  it  was  the  English  at  Oswego  that  spurred  the 
French  to  hasten  the  construction  of  the  stone  Fort  Niagara. 
A  broader  statement  of  the  situation,  however,  would  show  that 
these  establishments  by  no  means  represented  all  the  efforts 
which  the  rivals  were  putting  forth  at  this  period  to  secure  the 
Indian  trade. 

The  English  in  particular  were  successful  in  other  ways. 
One  of  the  first  legislative  acts  passed  under  Burnet  had  aimed 
to  put  a  stop  to  the  direct  trade  between  the  English  and  the 
French.  It  had  long  been  the  custom  for  Albany  traders  to 
carry  English-made  goods  to  Montreal,  selling  them  to  the 
French  who  in  turn  traded  them  to  the  Indians.  The  English 
could  supply  certain  articles  which  were  more  to  the  savage 
taste  than  those  sent  over  from  France ;  and  they  could  afford 
to  sell  them  at  a  lower  price.  Having  stopped  the  peddling 
to  the  French,  Governor  Burnet  made  strong  efforts  to  draw 
the  far  Western  Indians  to  Albany  for  trade  direct  with  them. 
In  these  efforts  he  was  fairly  successful.  Bands  of  strange 
savages  from  Mackinac  and  beyond,  accompanied  by  their 
squaws  and  papooses,  presented  themselves  at  Albany,  where 
their  kind  had  never  been  seen  before.  They  had  come  down 
Lake  Huron,  past  the  French  at  Detroit,  and  through  Lake 
Erie;  and  paddling  down  the  swift  reaches  of  the  navigable 
Niagara  had  made  the  portage,  reembarking  below  the  heights 
and  at  the  very  doorway  of  the  French  trading-house ;  with 
some  interchange,  710  doubt,  of  jeers  and  imprecations,  but  none 
of  furs  for  French  goods ;  and  following  the  historic  high- 


NIAGARA  AND  THE  WEST  221 

way  for  canoes,  they  skirted  the  Ontario  shore  to  the  Oswcgo, 
then  passed  up  that  river,  through  Oncida  Lake  and  down  the 
Mohawk,  until  they  could  lay  their  bundles  of  beaver  skins  be- 
fore the  English,  on  the  strand  at  Albany. 

This  was,  indeed,  a  triumph  of  trade.  They  spoke  a  lan- 
guage which  the  traders  there  had  never  heard,  but  they  brought 
many  packs  of  furs ;  and  with,  perhaps,  a  double  interpreta- 
tion, the  business  sped  to  the  entire  satisfaction  of  the  English. 
These  people  came  in  various  bands  ;  about  twenty  hunters,  in 
the  spring  of  1722;  and  in  the  spring  of  1723  over  eighty,  be- 
sides their  numerous  train  of  women  and  children;  with  sundry 
other  parties  following.  They  traveled  over  1,200  miles  to  get 
to  Albany. 

Burnet  was  delighted  with  this  proof  that  even  with  their 
Magazin  Royal  at  the  foot  of  the  Niagara  portage,  the  French 
did  not  by  any  means  have  a  monopoly  of  the  business.  The 
English  emissaries  in  the  country  of  the  Five  Nations  were  as 
active  as  ever  was  Joncaire,  and  at  this  period  appear  to  have 
been  even  more  successful.  Burnet  attributed  the  increased 
trade  to  the  stoppage  of  the  English-French  barter  above  men- 
tioned and  to  "  the  Company  whom  I  have  kept  in  the  Sinne- 
kees  Country  whose  business  it  has  been  to  persuade  all  the 
Indians  that  pass  by  to  come  rather  to  trade  at  Albany  than 
at  Montreal,  and  as  the  Indians  that  come  from  the  remote 
Lakes  to  go  to  Canada  are  commonly  in  want  of  Provisions 
when  they  come  below  the  falls  of  Niagara,  they  are  obliged  to 
supply  themselves  in  the  Sinnekees  Country  where  our  people 
are  and  then  they  may  take  their  choice  where  the}'  will  go, 
which  considering  the  experience  they  have  now  had  of  the  cheap- 
ness of  Goods  in  this  Province,  we  need  not  fear  will  be  uni- 
versally in  our  favor." 

So  well  disposed  were  these  Western  Indian  traders  towards 
the  English,  that  they  entered  into  a  "  League  of  Friendship  " 
at  Albany,  which  both  Governor  Burnet  and  Surveyor-General 
Colden  construed  as  a  desire  to  join  the  Six  Nations,  "  that 
they  may  be  esteemed  the  seventh  Nation  under  the  English 
Protection  "  —  a  matter  for  which  the  English  were  presumably 

ls  Burnt'!  to  Lords  of  Trade,  June  ,?.>,  17J:?. 


222  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

far  more  eager  than  was  the  ancient  League  of  the  Iroquois, 
now,  alas,  past  the  splendid  meridian  of  its  strength.  Its  re- 
maining energies  were  to  be  dissipated  in  the  strife  of  the  usurp- 
ing strangers. 

Burnet's  dealings  with  the  Five  Nations  were  conspicuous 
for  fairness  and  sagacity.  In  order  to  thwart  the  French,  and 
bring  the  Western  fur  trade  to  the  New  York  Colony,  he  could 
afford  to  be  generous,  especially  to  the  Senecas,  whose  aid  was 
indispensable.  In  his  first  meeting  with  them,  at  Albany,  in 
September,  1721,  he  so  won  their  good  will  that  they  declared 
they  would  not  let  the  French  fortify  Niagara.  The  French, 
they  protested,  had  deceived  them  there  some  thirty  years  ago, 
pretending  to  get  permission  to  build  a  storehouse,  and  then 
fortifying  it  without  permission ;  but,  said  the  Indians,  we 
pulled  it  down.  They  did  not  exactly  promise  to  do  so  again, 
but  said :  "  We  are  resolved  as  soon  as  any  French  come  to 
the  Five  Nations  to  tell  them  to  pull  down  that  trading  House 
at  Onjarara,  and  not  to  come  either  to  settle  or  Trade  among 
us  any  more." 

The  protestations  of  friendship  at  this  council,  on  the  part 
of  the  Five  Nations  —  still  referred  to  as  the  Five  Nations, 
though  since  the  inclusion  of  the  Tuscaroras  in  1715,  really 
become  six  —  were  somewhat  warmer  than  usual.  The  con- 
ference was  shared  in  by  the  Governor  "  and  diverse  gentlemen 
from  New  York  that  attended  his  Excellency,"  by  Captain 
Robert  Walters,  Cadwallader  Golden  and  James  Alexander  of 
the  Royal  Council,  by  the  twelve  Commissioners  of  Indian 
Affairs,  headed  by  Colonel  Peter  Schuyler,  by  the  Mayor  and 
Aldermen  of  Albany,  and,  no  doubt,  by  such  unofficial  specta- 
tors as  could  gain  admission.  The  Mohawks,  Oneidas,  Onon- 
dagas,  Cayugas  and  Scnccas  were  all  represented  by  painted, 
be-feathered  and  greedy  sachems.  Their  chief  spokesman  was 
not  content,  before  so  august  an  assemblage,  with  the  more  or- 
dinary pledges  of  friendship. 

"  We  call  you  Brother,"  he  said,  holding  out  the  belt  of 
wampum,  "  and  so  we  ought  to  do,  and  to  love  one  another 
as  well  as  those  that  have  sucked  on  [one]  breast,  for  we  are 
Brethren  indeed,  and  hope  to  live  and  dye  so,"  and  he  prom- 


NIAGARA  AND  THE  WEST  223 

ised  on  behalf  of  the  Five  Nations  "  to  keep  the  Covenant 
Chain  inviolable  as  long  as  Sun  &  Moon  endure."  It  is  not 
impossible  that  the  Indians  had  wind  of  the  great  present  they 
were  to  receive  — "  as  noble  a  Present,"  Burnet  wrote  after- 
wards, "  as  ever  was  given  them  from  His  Majesty  King 
George."  At  the  close  of  the  formal  proceedings  the  Indians 
told  the  Governor  that  they  heard  he  had  lately  been  married.19 
"  We  are  glad  of  it,"  they  said,  "  and  wish  you  much  Joy  And 
as  a  token  of  our  Kcjoycing  We  present  a  few  Beavers  to  your 
Lady  for  Pin  Money,"  adding  with  amusing  frankness,  "  It  is 
Customary  for  a  Brother  upon  his  Marryage  to  invite  his 
Brethren  to  be  Merry  and  Dance." 

The  Governor  did  not  disappoint  them.  The  gifts  which 
he  now  spread  before  them  would  have  filled  a  warehouse.  The 
list,  which  has  been  preserved,20  is  not  uninstructive.  There 
were  given  to  the  Indians  on  this  occasion  five  pieces  of  strouds 
[worth  at  that  time  £10  per  piece  in  New  York  and  upwards 
of  $13  at  Montreal],  five  of  duffels,  five  of  blankets,  four  of 
"half  thicks,"  fifty  fine  shirts,  213  Ozibrigg  21  shirts,  fifty 
red  coats,  fifty  pairs  of  stockings,  six  dozen  scissors,  fourteen 
dozen  knives,  four  dozen  jack-knives,  five  dozen  square  look- 
ing-glasses and  thirty  dozen  of  round  hand-mirrors,  twenty- 
eight  parcels  of  gartering  and  twelve  of  binding,  twenty  pounds 
of  beads,  twenty  brass  kettles,  fifty  guns,  1,000  pounds 
of  powder  in  bags,  200  pounds  of  bar  lead,  ten  cases  of  ball, 
1,500  gun-flints,  twelve  dozen  jcwsharps,  six  and  one-half  bar- 
rels of  tobacco,  and  last,  but  very  far  from  least,  a  hogshead 
of  rum.  There  were  besides  private  presents  to  the  sachems, 
including  guns,  powder,  shirts,  laced  coats  and  laced  hats, 
and  special  portions  of  liquor.  Even  this  was  not  enough. 

19  He  had  married  a  daughter  of  Abraham  Van  Home,  a  prominent  New 
York  merchant. 

20  Minutes  of  Conference   at    Albany,  Sept.   7,   ]7^?1,  kept   by   Robt.   Liv- 
ingston, Sec'y   for   Indian  Affairs. 

-i  A  coarse  linen  much  used  in  the  Indian  trade.  The  name  is  often 
written  "  O/.nabrigg,"  but  the  correct  form  is  Oznaburg,  after  the  city  so 
named  in  Germany,  whence  these  linens  were  originally  imported.  The 
name  came  to  be  applied  to  coarse  linens  made  elsewhere.  "  Duffels"  were 
coarse  woolen  cloths,  the  name  probably  derived  from  Duffel  in  the  Nether- 
lands. 


AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

Governor  Burnet  "  in  the  name  of  his  Majesty,  Ordered  them 
some  Barrls  of  Beer  to  be  merry  withall  and  dance,  which  they 
did  according  to  their  Custom  and  were  extreamly  well  Satis- 
fyed." 

And  back  to  their  several  villages  the  loaded  retinue  went; 
up  the  Mohawk,  to  Onondaga ;  the  diminishing  party  contin- 
uing, now  by  lake  and  stream,  now  filing  along  the  old  trails^ 
to  the  Seneca  towns  in  the  valley  of  the  Genesee  and  to  the  west- 
ward. Red  coats,  hand-mirrors  and  new  guns  were  hard  argu- 
ments to  be  overcome  by  the  pinched  French  at  Magazin  Royal. 

It  was  on  the  strength  of  the  good  will  of  the  Senecas,  won 
at  this  conference,  that  Burnet  ventured  to  send  his  young 
men,  under  Captain  Schuyler  —  son  of  Peter  Schuyler,  Presi- 
dent of  the  Council  —  to  attempt  a  settlement  at  Irondcquoit 
on  Lake  Ontario.  Burnet  hoped  that  others  would  join  him 
there;  but  caused  it  to  be  clearly  understood  that  the  place  was 
indisputably  in  the  Indians'  possession.  It  was  merely  to  serve 
as  a  depot  of  English  goods,  where  Western  traders,  who  would 
pass  by  the  French  establishment  on  the  Niagara,  were  to  be 
supplied  on  terms  far  more  liberal  than  the  French  could  afford. 
With  the  one  possible  exception  of  powder,  the  English  could 
furnish  everything  used  in  the  Indian  trade  more  cheaply  than 
the  French,  supplying,  of  course,  rum  instead  of  brandy,  a 
substitution  to  which  the  red  man  made  no  demur,  so  long  as 
the  quantity  was  ample. 


CHAPTER  XIII 

"A  HOUSE  OF  PEACE" 
THE  BUILDING  OF  FORT  NIAGARA  —  SERVICES  OF  JONCAIRE,  LON- 

GUEUIL    AND    DE    I,KRY JoNCAIRE's    LETTERS    FROM    THE    FoRT 

—  AN  IMPORTANT  OUTPOST  FOR  FRANCE  IN  AMERICA. 

WE  arc  now  come  to  the  point  in  our  story  where  the  testi- 
mony of  the  ancient  manuscripts  is  quickened,  vivified  by  an 
existing  landmark.  The  stone  house  popularly  known  as  the 
"  castle,"  the  most  venerable  of  the  group  of  structures  in 
the  Government  reserve  of  Fort  Niagara,  dates,  in  its  oldest 
parts,  from  1726.  It  is  the  oldest  edifice  in  the  Northern 
United  States,  west  of  the  Mohawk.  Vaudreuil  conceived  the 
project  of  it;  Longueuil  the  younger  and  Joncaire  gained  the 
uncertain  consent  of  the  Five  Nations  for  its  erection ;  and 
Gaspard  Chaussegros  dc  Lery,  the  King's  chief  engineer  in 
Canada,  determined  its  exact  location  and  superintended  its 
construction. 

Joncaire's  efforts  to  secure  for  the  French  a  more  efficient 
stronghold  on  the  hanks  of  the  Niagara  than  his  palisaded 
storehouse  under  Lewiston  Heights,  began  at  least  as  early  as 
1723.  They  probably  were  unceasing  from  the  time  of  his  first 
occupancy  of  the  neighborhood,  but  in  the  }?ear  named  the 
correspondence  shows  that  his  efforts  were  directed  toward 
definite  achievement.  On  August  23d,  Joncaire  wrote  from 
Niagara  to  the  Governor  that  the  Iroquois  had  agreed  that  a 
regular  fort  should  be  built,  on  the  Niagara,  "  but  that  it  should 
be  a  little  fort  of  palisades,  in  which  300  men  could  defend 
themselves." 

This  was  but  an  entering  wedge  for  the  more  substantial 
structure  which  the  French  had  resolved  to  build.  When 
Vaudreuil  learned,  December  S,  172-1,  of  the  operations  of  the 
Knglish  at  Oswego,  he  realized  that  another  move  in  the  game 
must  be  made  bv  the  French  if  thev  would  retain  even  a  share 


226  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

of  that  portion  of  the  fur  trade  which  made  the  Great  Lakes 
its  highway  to  market.  Joncaire's  feeble  establishment  was  in 
danger  of  eclipse,  of  being  cut  out,  by  the  rum  and  other  su- 
perior inducements  which  the  English  were  so  lavishly  offering. 
It  is  evident  that  the  Governor  studied  the  situation  thoroughly 
that  winter.  By  spring  he  had  made  up  his  mind.  He  wrote 
to  the  Minister,  May  25th,  that,  should  the  English  under- 
take to  make  a  permanent  establishment  at  Oswego,  nothing 
remained  but  to  fortify  Niagara.  He  could  say  "  fortify " 
to  the  Minister,  though  to  the  Iroquois  declarations  must  con- 
tinue to  be  made,  that  their  devoted  father  —  Onontio  — 
sought  only  to  build  a  trading-house  —  a  storehouse  —  any- 
thing, so  long  as  it  was  not  called  fort.  He  proposed  first  to 
build  two  barques  on  Lake  Ontario,  which  should  not  only  carry 
materials  for  the  proposed  construction  at  Niagara,  but  could 
cruise  the  lake  and  intercept  Indian  parties  on  their  way  to 
trade  with  the  English.  The  building  at  Niagara,  the  Minis- 
ter was  informed,  "  will  not  have  the  appearance  of  a  fort, 
so  that  no  offense  will  be  given  to  the  Iroquois,  who  have  been 
unwilling  to  allow  any  there,  but  it  will  answer  the  purpose  of 
a  fort  just  as  well." 

The  Intendant,  M.  Begon,  approved  the  project.  Under 
date  of  June  10,  1725,  he  wrote  to  the  Minister,  that  in  view 
of  the  great  importance  of  doing  everything  possible  to  pre- 
vent the  English  from  driving  the  French  from  Niagara,  "  we 
have  determined  to  build  at  Fort  Frontenac  two  barques  to 
serve  in  case  of  need  against  the  English,  to  drive  them  from 
that  establishment  [Niagara]  and  also  to  serve  for  carrying 
materials  with  which  to  build  a  stone  fort  at  Niagara,  which 
we  hold  to  be  necessary  to  put  that  post  in  a  state  of  de- 
fense against  the  English  "  as  well  as  against  the  Iroquois. 
He  added  that  these  boats  would  be  very  useful  in  time  of  peace, 
sailing  between  La  Galette,  Frontenac  and  Niagara,  and  carry- 
ing provisions,  munitions  of  war,  merchandise  for  trade,  and 
peltries,  reducing  the  expense  below  that  of  canoe  service. 
"  They  will  serve  also  as  far  as  Niagara  for  the  transport  of 
provisions,  merchandise  and  peltries  for  all  those  belonging  to 
the  posts  in  the  upper  country,  or  who  go  up  with  trade  per- 


"  A  HOUSE  OF  PEACE  "  227 

mits.  The  freight  which  they  will  be  able  to  carry  will  com- 
pensate the  King  for  the  cost  of  construction. 

"  I  sent,  for  this  purpose,  in  February  last,  two  carpenters 
and  four  sawyers,  who  arrived  at  Fort  Frontenac,  traveling 
on  the  ice,  the  26th  of  the  same  month.  I  am  informed  that 
during  the  winter  they  cut  the  wood  needed  and  have  barked 
and  sawed  a  part  of  it.  I  have  also  sent  nine  other  carpen- 
ters and  two  blacksmiths,  who  set  out  from  Montreal  on  the 
15th  of  last  month,  to  hurry  on  the  work,  that  these  boats 
may  be  ready  to  sail  the  coming  autumn." 

A  postscript  to  this  letter  adds :  "  Since  writing,  M.  de 
Joncaire  has  come  down  and  tells  me  that  the  Iroquois  will 
not  interfere  with  building  the  boats,  and  will  not  oppose 
the  Niagara  establishment,  asking  only  that  there  should  not 
be  built  there  a  stone  fort." 

As  the  years  passed,  it  was  Joncaire  who  more  and  more 
represented  the  power  of  France  on  the  Niagara.  He  it  was 
to  whom  the  Governor  of  Canada  entrusted  the  delicate  busi- 
ness of  maintaining  amicable  relations  with  the  Scnecas ;  and 
on  his  reports  and  advice  depended  in  considerable  measure  the 
attitude  of  the  French  towards  their  ever-active  rivals.  In 
November,  1724,  Vaudreuil  had  written  to  the  Minister  that 
in  order  to  retain  the  Five  Nations  in  their  "  favorable  dis- 
positions," he  thought  he  "  could  not  do  better  than  to  send 
Sieur  de  Joncaire  to  winter  at  Niagara  and  among  the  Senccas. 
According  to  the  news  to  be  received  from  Sieur  dc  Joncaire," 
added  the  Governor,  "  I  shall  determine  whether  to  send  Sieur 
de  Longueuil  to  the  Onontagues,  among  whom  he  has  consider- 
able influence." 

That  Joncaire's  news  was  favorable,  is  evident  from  the 
sequel ;  for  Longueuil  was  sent  to  the  Onondagas,  from  whom 
he  gained  a  dubious  consent  that  the  French,  might  build  a  fort 
at  the  mouth  of  the  Niagara.  In  June,  1725,  Joncaire  went 
down  from  the  Seneca  Castle  —  near  present  Geneva  —  to 

*  These  barques  were  commanded  !>y  sailing-masters  Gairnon  and  Goue- 
ville.  Kach  had  four  sailors,  with  six  soldiers  to  help.  A  memorandum 
states  that  the  operations  of  the  vessels  in  172?  cost  .)??.)  livres,  :?  sols 
(sous),  11  deniers.  A  sailor  received  for  a  season's  work  530  livres,  the 
masters  803  livres  each. 


228  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

Quebec,  where  he  assured  the  Intendant,  Begon,  that  the  Iro- 
quois  were  pledged  not  to  interfere  with  the  construction  of  the 
two  barques  then  building  at  Fort  Frontenac,  "  nor  oppose  the 
establishment  at  Niagara,  only  requiring  that  no  stone  fort 
should  be  erected  there."  According  to  the  French  reports, 
this  last  stipulation  was  soon  set  aside,  for  in  the  dispatches  of 
Vaudreuil  and  Begon  to  the  Minister,  dated  May  7,  1726,  tell- 
ing of  Longueuil's  mission  to  the  Five  Nations,  one  reads  as 
follows : 

"  He  repaired  next  to  Onontague,  an  Iroquois  village,  and 
found  the  Deputies  from  the  other  four  villages  there  waiting 
for  him ;  he  got  them  to  consent  to  the  construction  of  two 
barques,  and  to  the  erection  of  a  stone  house  at  Niagara,  the 
plan  of  which  he  designed." 

This  mission  of  Longueuil  proved  an  eventful  one.  He  was 
charged  to  cross  Lake  Ontario  to  order  the  English  to  with- 
draw from  Oswego.  A  curious  meeting  ensued.  At  the  mouth 
of  the  river  he  found  100  Englishmen  with  sixty  canoes.  They 
stopped  him,  called  for  his  pass,  and  showed  him  their  instruc- 
tions from  the  Governor  of  New  York,  not  to  let  any  French- 
man go  by  without  a  passport.  Then  the  doughty  Canadian, 
not  relishing  the  idea  of  being  under  English  surveillance, 
turned  to  the  Iroquois  chiefs  who  were  present,  and  taunted 
them  with  being  no  longer  masters  of  their  own  territory.  His 
harangue  had  the  desired  effect.  The  Indians,  galled  by  his 
words,  broke  out  against  the  English  with  violent  reproaches 
and  threats.  "  You  have  been  permitted  to  come  here  to 
trade,"  they  said,  "  but  we  will  not  suffer  anything  more." 
They  promised  Longueuil  that  in  the  event  of  a  French  war 
with  the  English,  they  would  remain  neutral ;  and  the  delighted 
emissary  turned  his  back  on  the  discomfited  Englishmen,  who 
dared  not  interfere,  and  accompanied  by  a  large  volunteer  ret- 
inue of  Indians,  continued  his  journey  to  Onondaga. 

Here  the  deputies  of  the  Five  Nations  gathered  to  meet 
them.  He  showed  them  the  plan  he  had  designed  for  a  house 
at  Niagara.  The  report  as  subsequently  laid  before  the  Minis- 
ter and  Louis  XV,  says  "  a  stone  house."  It  is  by  no  means 
certain  that  Longueuil  gave  the  Indians  this  idea.  According 


"A  HOUSE  OF  PEACE"  229 

to  the  version  they  gave,  when  taken  to  task  the  next  year  by 
Governor  Burnet,  the  French  officer  told  the  Onondagas  "  that 
he  had  built  a  Bark  House  at  Niagara,  which  was  old  and  be- 
gan to  decay,  that  he  could  no  longer  keep  his  goods  dry  in  it, 
and   was   now   come   to   desire   leave   to   build   a   bigger   house, 
wherein  his  goods  might  be  safe  from  rain,  and  said  that  if  they 
consented  that  he  might  build  a  house  there  and  have  vessels  in 
Cadaracqui  Lake  [Ontario],  he  promised  it  should  be  for  their 
good,   peace   and  quietness,   and   for   their   children's   children, 
that  the  French  would  protect,  them  for  three  hundred  years." 
The  Senccas  were  reported  to  have  protested;  they  sent  a  wam- 
pum belt  to  the  Onondagas,  with  the  warning  that  "  in  case 
the  French  should  desire  to  make  any  Building  or  Settlement 
at  Niagara  or  at  Ochsweeke  [Lake  Eric]  or  elsewhere  on  their 
land,  they  should  not  give  their  consent  to  it."      But  the  Onon- 
dagas, "  being  prevailed  upon  by  Fair  speeches  and  promises, 
rejected  the  Sinnekes  belt,  and  gave  the  French  leave  for  build- 
ing at  Niagara."      It  was  Joncaire,  as  we  have  seen,  who  over- 
came the  objecton  of  the  Senecas.      Returning  from  their  coun- 
try, he  brought  word  that  they  would  not  hinder  the  construc- 
tion, though  he  had  previously  cautioned  Yaudrcuil  not  to  at- 
tempt a  stone  building.      But  the  elder  Longueuil,  writing  to 
the  Minister  under  date  of  October  31,   1725,  explicitly  says 
of  his   son's   achievement:     ''The   Sieur  de   Longueuil,  having 
repaired  to  the  Onondaga  village,  found  there  the  deputies  of 
the  other  four   Iroquois  villages.      lie  met   them  there,  he  got 
them  to  consent  to  the  construction  of  the  two  barques  and  to 
the  building  of  a   stone  house  at  Niagara."      It  was  to  be  no 
fort,  but   "  a  house  of  solid  masonry,  where   all   things  needed 
for   trade  with   the  Indians   could  be  safelv  kept,  and  for  this 
purpose   he   would   go    to    Niagara    to    mark    out    the    spot   on 
which  this  house  might  be  erected,  to  which  thev  consented." 

The  sequence  of  events  in  this  affair  affords  a  striking  illus- 
tration of  the  way  in  which  things  were  taken  for  granted,  or 
work  undertaken  before  official  sanction  was  obtained  or  funds 
made  available1.  The  two  barques,  without  which  the  construc- 
tion of  Fort  Niagara  would  have  been  impossible,  were  being 
built  before  the  Indians  had  Driven  their  consent  to  it.  The 


230  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

consent  of  the  Indians  to  the  erection  of  the  fort  was  not  gained 
until  after  its  erection  had  been  fully  determined  upon  by  the 
French ;  and  all  of  this  important  work  was  well  in  hand  long 
before  the  Department  in  France  had  provided  funds  for  it. 
The  plan  of  the  Niagara  house,  which  is  spoken  of  as  designed 
by  Longueuil,  was  sent  to  the  Minister  in  France,  with  an  es- 
timate of  the  cost,  amounting  to  29,295  livres.  Various  esti- 
mates are  mentioned  in  the  dispatches  of  the  time.  De  Maure- 
pas,  perplexed  by  a  multiplicity  of  demands,  endorsed  upon 
these  dispatches :  "  It  seems  necessary  to  forego,  this  year, 
the  grant  of  29,295  li.,  and  13,090  li.  for  the  house  at  Niagara 
and  the  construction  of  the  two  barques."  At  Versailles, 
April  29,  1727,  Louis  expressed  his  satisfaction  at  the  con- 
struction of  Fort  Niagara,  and  promised  to  "  cause  to  be  ap- 
propriated in  next  year's  Estimate  for  the  Western  Domain, 
the  sum  of  20,430  li.,  the  amount  of  the  expense,  according  to 
the  divers  estimates  they  have  sent,  and  as  the  principal  house 
at  the  mouth  of  the  river  must  have  been  finished  this  spring, 
his  Majesty's  intention  is,  that  Sieurs  de  Beauharnois  and 
Duypuy  [Dupuy]  adopt  measures  to  rebuild  the  old  house  next 
Autumn.  This  they  will  find  the  more  easy,  as  the  two  barques 
built  at  Fort  Frontenac  will  aid  considerably  in  tranporting 
materials.  His  Majesty  agrees  with  them  in  opinion  that  the 
Iroquois  will  not  take  any  umbrage  at  this,  for  besides  being 
considered  only  as  the  reconstruction  of  the  house  already 
there,  it  will  be  used,  at  least  during  the  Peace,  only  for  Trade. 
They  will,  meanwhile,  adopt  with  those  Indians  such  precau- 
tions as  they  shall  consider  necessary,  to  neutralize  any  new 
impressions  of  distrust  the  English  would  not  fail  to  insinuate 
among  them  on  this  occasion.  This  must  prompt  them  to  have 
the  work  pushed  on  with  the  greatest  possible  diligence."  The 
King  afterwards  disapproved  of  any  further  outlay  for  "  the 
old  house,"  and  Joncaire's  establishment  at  the  head  of  the 
lower  navigation  on  the  Niagara  was  never  rebuilt. 

It  was  true  then,  as  now,  that  building  expenses  do  not  always 
work  out  according  to  specifications.  In  October,  1727,  we 
find  Dupuy  trying  to  explain  his  heavy  expenses:  "The 
house  at  Niagara  cost  infinitely  more  than  the  29,295  li. 


"  A  HOUSE  OF  PEACE  "  231 

granted  for  last  year.  The  expeditions  which  we  have  hud  to 
send  there  in  1726  and  this  year  have  greatly  increased  the 
cost  of  freight  and  transportation  of  provisions  needed  there." 

Vaudreuil  had  hoped  to  have  the  vessels  on  Lake  Ontario 
ready  by  the  autumn  of  1725 ;  but  no  record  is  found  stating 
that  they  sailed  to  the  Niagara  that  year.  The  testimony  of 
the  correspondence,  so  far  as  known,  shows  that  the  vessels 
did  not  carry  building  material  or  workmen  to  the  Niagara 
until  navigation  opened  in  the  spring  of  1726.2  The  Baron 
de  Longueuil  wrote,  October  31,  1725:  "The  two  barques 
have  been  finished  this  autumn,  they  will  be  ready  to  sail  next 
Spring,  and  to  carry  the  stone  and  other  material  needed  for 
building  the  stone  house  at  Niagara,"  etc.  They  were  to  take 
out  on  their  first  voyage,  ten  masons  and  four  carpenters  and 
joiners,  besides  the  100  soldiers  with  six  officers  detailed  for 
the  enterprise.  A  report  of  the  Intendcnt  Begon,  May  20, 
1726,  says:  "The  two  barques  built  at  Fort  Frontcnac  are 
ready  to  sail,  they  will  carry  to  Niagara  the  materials  neces- 
sary for  building  the  house." 

Vaudreuil,  as  we  have  seen,  had  written  that  Longueuil  had 
designed  a  plan  for  the  proposed  establishment  on  the  Niagara, 
and  it  may  have  been  in  accordance  with  the  suggestions  of 
this  soldier  that  the  work  was  begun ;  but  for  such  a  construc- 
tion as  was  desired,  expert  engineering  ability  was  required. 
There  was  but  one  man  in  Canada  qualified  to  undertake  the 
task,  and  to  him  the  Baron  de  Longueuil  —  then  Governor  ad 
interim,  wrote  under  date  of  March  28,  1726: 

"  I  beg  Monsieur  Chaussegros  de  Lerv,  engineer,  to  work 
without  let-up  in  building  the  Niagara  house,  which  he  will 
place  wherever  he  shall  judge  it  most  advisable.  It  is  a 
work  of  absolute  necessity,  the  old  house  being  of  wood  and 
offering  no  means  of  preservation,  unless  it  is  fortified.  It  is 
moreover  of  the  greatest  consequence  to  profit  by  the  favorable 

-The  local  histories  and  narratives  relating  to  Fort  Xiapara  usually 
give  the  date  of  its  commencement  as  17 _',">.  There  is  some  discrepancy  of 
dates  in  the  documents,  or  copies  of  original  documents,  which  I  have  ex- 
amined; but  it  is  plain  that  work  on  the  "castle"  was  not  bepun  until 
June,  17x?().  That  the  reader  may  know  on  what  I  base  my  conclusions, 
I  have  given  in  my  narrative  ample  extracts  from  the  documents  themselves. 


232  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

disposition  of  the  Iroquois  in  regard  to  us.     I  undertake  to 
have  this  expense  approved  by  the  Court." 

Gaspard  Chaussegros  de  Lery,  who  now  becomes  an  impor- 
tant figure  in  the  story  of  the  Niagara,  was  the  son  of  an 
engineer  of  Toulon,  where  he  was  born,  October  13,  1682. 
Trained  to  his  father's  profession,  we  find  him,  in  1706,  serv- 
ing in  the  army  of  Italy,  and  gaining  glory  and  a  wound  at 
the  siege  of  Turin.  A  later  service  in  the  squadron  of  the 
Marquis  de  Forbin,  took  him  to  the  coast  of  Scotland  and 
won  him  a  captain's  rank  in  the  infantry  regiment  of  Sault. 
When  the  navy  board  (for  so  we  may  render  "  le  conseil  du 
marine  ")  decided  in  1716  to  undertake  a  more  extensive  sys- 
tem of  fortifications  in  Canada,  it  chose  de  Lery  to  carry 
out  the  royal  plans.  These  included  an  elaborate  refortifica- 
tion  of  Quebec,  the  building  of  a  wall  around  Montreal  and 
subsequently  of  other  works  at  Chambly,  Three  Rivers  and 
other  points,  as  well  as  the  construction  of  prisons  and  public 
buildings.  De  Lery  came  at  once  to  the  scene  of  his  labors, 
perfected  the  plan  of  what  he  proposed  to  do  at  Quebec,  and 
returning  to  Paris,  submitted  it  to  the  King.  His  plans  and 
estimates  were  approved  and  he  returned  to  Canada  to  press 
forward  the  work.  The  correspondence  of  the  time  shows 
that  he  was  much  embarrassed  by  lack  of  sufficient  appropria- 
tions ;  a  fact  which  gives  special  point  to  the  closing  statement 
in  M.  de  Longueuil's  letter,  assigning  him  to  Niagara.  Not 
having  received  any  order  from  the  Court  to  undertake  this 
work,  de  Lery  was  apprehensive  that  the  King  would  not  ap- 
prove. However,  reiving  on  the  assurance  of  Longueuil,  he 
devoted  himself  to  it  in  the  summer  of  1726.  Under  date  of 
July  26th  of  that  year  the  Baron  de  Longueuil  wrote  to  the 
Minister : 

"  It  is  for  me  to  inform  you  of  the  measures  which  I  took 
this  last  spring  for  the  establishment  of  the  post  of  Niagara 
.  .  .  and  of  my  plan  for  sending  to  Niagara  as  soon  as  navi- 
gation was  open,  in  order  to  forestall  the  English,  and  to  be- 
gin early  to  work  on  the  house  of  which  we  have  had  the  honor 
to  send  you  the  plan,  in  order  that  it  may  be  completed  this 
year.  M.  liegon  assured  me  that  he  would  send  the  workmen 


"  A  HOUSE  OF  PEACE  "  233 

I  had  asked  for,  as  soon  as  the  ice  went  out,  and  that  M.  dc 
Lery  would  come  to  Montreal  at  the  same  time.  He  arrived 
here  in  March;  and  in  April  I  sent  the  workmen  with  a  detach- 
ment of  a  hundred  soldiers,  commanded  by  my  son  and  four 
other  officers.  As  soon  as  they  arrived  at  Niagara,  I  learn 
by  these  officers,  M.  de  Lery  had  laid  out  the  house  in  another 
place  than  that  which  I  had  proposed  to  him,  and  which  had 
seemed  to  me  most  suitable  in  order  to  make  us  masters  of  the 
portage,  and  of  the  communication  between  the  two  lakes.  He 
will  no  doubt  give  you  his  reasons. 

"  The  work  has  been  very  well  carried  on  and  the  fortifica- 
tions are  well  advanced.  The  barques  which  were  built  last 
year  at  Frontenac  have  been  of  wonderful  aid.  They  sent 
me  word  the  tenth  of  this  month  that  the  walls  were  already 
breast  high  everywhere.  There  has  been  no  opposition  on  the 
part  of  the  Iroquois,  who  on  the  contrary  appear  well  satish'ed 
to  have  us  near  them;  but  the  English,  restless  and  jealous 
of  this  establishment,  have  seduced  and  engaged  several  Seneca 
chiefs  to  come  and  thwart  us  with  speeches  of  which  I  send 
herewith  a  copy,  and  which  have  had  no  other  effect  than  to 
reassure  us  of  the  good  will  of  the  Iroquois."  He  expresses  the 
hope  that  the  house  at  Niagara  will  be  finished  this  year,  refers 
to  the  Dutch  and  English  at  Oswego,  and  adds:  "The  un- 
easiness I  have  felt,  because  of  the  English  and  Dutch,  who  had 
threatened  to  establish  themselves  at  Niagara,  and  my  fears  lest 
the  Iroquois  would  retract  the  word  they  gave  last  year,  have 
not  permitted  me  to  await  your  orders  for  the  construction  of 
this  house.  I  beg  you  to  approve  what  I  have  done  through 
zeal  for  the  good  of  this  colony." 

One  of  the  ''  four  other  officers  "  referred  to  in  the  fore- 
going letter,  as  having  shared  in  the  building  of  Fort  Niagara, 
was  the  Sieur  de  Rame/ay,  '"Chevalier  of  the  Royal  and  Mili- 
tary Order  of  St.  Louis,"  etc.,  as  later  memoirs  recount  his 
titles.  lie  was  only  an  ensign  in  the  colonial  troops  in  1720, 
when  he  entered  upon  his  Canadian  service;  and  he  remained 
in  the  garrison  at  Montreal  until  the  spring  of  17~().  when  he 
was  appointed  lieutenant  and  sent  to  Niagara.  Another  who 
shared  in  this  undertaking;  was  a  son  of  Lieutenant  Le  Verrier. 


234-  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

The  youth  "  showed  good  qualities  in  his  service  at  Niagara," 
but  becoming  sick  was  sent  back  to  Quebec.  Still  another  un- 
fortunate was  the  Sieur  de  la  Loge,  who  received  so  severe  an 
injury  in  one  of  his  eyes,  at  Niagara  in  this  summer,  that  it  was 
feared  he  would  lose  the  sight  of  both;  he  was  sent  to  Quebec 
and  thence  to  Paris,  that  he  might  have  the  attention  of  the 
famous  oculist,  St.  Yves. 

On  April  28,  1726,  the  Baron  de  Longueuil  appointed  his 
son  Charles  Le  Moyne  (then  a  captain,  afterwards  second 
Baron  de  Longueuil)  to  be  the  first  commandant  of  Fort 
Niagara  —  not  then  built,  but  destined  to  be  the  focal  point  of 
all  our  regional  history  under  the  French.  The  letter  making 
the  appointment  directed  the  young  man  to  repair  to  Niagara 
with  a  detachment  of  troops,  to  superintend  the  construction 
of  the  fort ;  and  called  upon  the  officers  and  soldiers  of  the 
detachment,  and  especially  upon  Joncaire,  and  upon  all  trav- 
elers passing  by  way  of  the  Niagara,  to  acknowledge  his  au- 
thority.3 

On  September  5th  the  new  commandant  wrote  from  Niagara 
that  the  new  house  was  very  much  advanced,  and  would  have 
been  finished  had  it  not  been  for  the  sickness  that  broke  out 
among  the  workmen,  30  of  whom  had  been  ill ;  but  that  the  place 
was  then  enclosed  and  secured. 

De  Longueuil,  who  knew  the  region  well,  had  proposed  that 
the  stone  house  should  stand  farther  up  the  river,  and  on  going 
to  the  Niagara,  after  his  successful  conference  at  Onondaga, 
had  decided  to  place  it  "  on  a  most  advantageous  elevation, 
about  170  feet  from  the  old  house,  and  some  130  feet  from  the 
edge  of  the  river :  the  barques  could  there  be  moored  to  shore, 
under  the  protection  of  the  house,  of  which  they  could  make 
later  on,  a  fort  with  crenelated  enclosure  or  wooden  stockade  "; 
but  de  Lery  decided  otherwise,  holding  that  the  angle  of  the 
lake  and  river  not  only  commanded  the  portage  and  all  com- 
munication between  the  lakes,  but  enabled  the  French  to  keep 
watch  over  Lake  Ontario,  so  as  to  prevent  the  English  from 

3  The  letter,  which  is  of  peculiar  interest,  since  it  records  the  appoint- 
ment of  the  first  in  the  loiifr  succession  of  commandants  at  Fort  Niagara, 
will  he  found  in  the  Appendix. 


"  A  HOUSE  OF  PEACE  "  235 

going  to  trade  on  the  north  shore  of  that  lake.  The  English 
could  not  cross  the  lake  in  their  bark  canoes;  to  reach  the 
north  side,  the  natural  route  was  by  skirting  the  shore,  from 
Oswego  to  Niagara  and  westward.  Hence,  even  though  de 
Lery  had  placed  the  fort  at  the  portage,  the  English  might 
easily  have  seized  the  mouth  of  the  river,  and  by  controlling 
Lake  Ontario,  have  blockaded  the  French  in  their  fort  and 
starved  them  into  a  surrender.  They  could  have  made  it  im- 
possible for  assistance  to  reach  it  from  the  base  of  supplies, 
Frontenac,  or  the  river  towns ;  and  they  could  have  made  it 
equally  impossible  for  the  garrison  of  Fort  Niagara  to  with- 
draw. The  two  barques  which  the  French  counted  so  greatly 
upon,  for  communication  with  the  new  establishment,  would 
often  find  it  a  tedious  if  not  impossible  matter  to  beat  up  to 
the  portage  against  seven  miles  of  steady  current ;  whereas  the 
post,  if  placed  at  the  mouth  of  the  river,  would  always  be 
accessible,  these  vessels  making  the  passage  from  Fort  Fron- 
tenac and  return,  in  fair  weather,  in  about  fourteen  days.  All 
of  these  reasons  are  so  cogent  that  one  can  but  wonder  that  an 
officer  of  Longueuil's  experience  should  have  considered  any 
other  spot  than  that  fixed  upon  by  de  Lery.  The  latter's 
capabilities  as  a  military  engineer  were  sometimes  called  in 
question.  Montcalm,  more  than  a  quarter  century  later,  spoke 
of  him  not  only  as  "  a  great  ignoramus  in  his  profession,"  add- 
ing, "  it  needs  only  to  look  at  his  works,"  but  declared  that 
lie  ''  robbed  the  King  like  the  rest  "  of  the  men  who  served  as 
cngineers-in-chief  in  Canada.1  Be  that  as  it  may,  de  Lery's 
judgment  in  locating  Fort  Niagara  was  justified  by  the  cir- 
cumstances. 

When  the  foundations  of  the  stone  house  were  laid  and  the 
walls  were  rising,  de  Lery  traced  a  fort  around  them.  He1 
made  a  map  of  the  lake,  showing  the  mouth  of  the  river,  and 
prepared  plans  and  elevations  of  the  house.  The  drawing-; 
were  forwarded  to  the  King,  and  are  described  in  the  abstract 
of  dispatches.  The  portion  of  tin1  works  which  it  was  found 
impossible  to  complete1,  before  the  winter  of  17~G-~7  set  in, 

4  . Montcalm  to  M.  (!<•  Xortnand,  Montreal,  April  1  .\  17^9.  Paris  Docs., 
X,  Wi.'i. 


236 


AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 


"  A  HOUSE  OF  PEACE  "  237 

he  colored  yellow.  He  may  have  procured  part  of  his  stone 
from  the  Heights  ("  Lc  Plato7i  "),  his  timher  from  the  marsh 
west  of  the  river;  but  most  of  the  stone  was  brought 
from  the  vicinity  of  Fort  Frontenac,  in  the  two  barques. 
With  the  map  there  was  also  sent  a  memoir  "  to 
make  plain  my  reasons  for  placing  the  house  ["  maison  a 
machicoulis  "]  at  the  [entrance  of  the]  strait,  where  it  now 
stands,  and  where  the  late  Marquis  de  Uenonville,  Governor- 
General  of  this  country,  had  formerly  built  a  fort,  with  a  garri- 
son." He  sent  also  a  plan  and  estimate  for  a  small  house  at 
the  Niagara  portage,  adding:  "This  house  will  be  useful  in 
time  of  peace,  but  in  case  of  war  with  the  Indians,  it  could 
scarcely  be  maintained,  on  account  of  the  difficulty  of  reliev- 
ing the  garrison."  The  memoir  continues : 

"  I  arrived,  June  6th,  with  a  detachment  of  troops,  at  the 
entrance  to  the  river  Niagara.  The  same  day  I  examined  it, 
with  the  masters  of  the  barques.  We  found  it  not  navigable 
for  the  barques."  The  examination  must  have  been  most  su- 
perficial, for  once  past  the  bar  at  the  mouth,  they  would  have 
found  a  deep  natural  channel  for  seven  miles. 

"  I  remarked,  in  beginning  this  house,  that  if  I  built  it,  like 
those  in  Canada,  liable  to  fire,  should  war  come  and  the  sav- 
ages invest  it,  as  was  the  case  formerly  with  Mons.  Denon- 
ville's  fort,  if  it  caught  fire  the  garrison  and  all  the  munitions 
would  be  wholly  lost,  and  the  [control  of  the]  country  as  well. 
It  was  this  which  determined  me  to  make  a  house  proof  against 
these  accidents.  Instead  of  wooden  partitions  ["  cloisons  "] 
I  have  had  built  bearing-walls  ["  dcs  rnitrs  dc  refcnd  "],  and 
paved  all  the  floors  with  flat  stones.  ...  I  have  traced  around 
a  fort  of  four  bastions;  and  in  order  that  they  may  defend 
themselves  in  this  house,  T  have  made  all  the  garret  windows 
machieolated ;  the  loft  ["  grcnicr "]  being  paved  with  flat 
stones  on  a  floor  full  of  good  oak  joists,  iipon  which  cannon 
may  be  placed  above  tin's  structure.  Though  large  it  would 
have  been  entirely  finished  in  September,  had  not  some  French 
tojjagcurs  coming  from  the  Miamis  and  Illinois,  in  passing  this 
post,  spread  the  fever  here,  so  that  nearly  all  the  soldiers  and 
workmen  have  had  it.  This  has  interfered  with  the  construction 


238  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

so  that  it  has  not  been  completed  in  the  time  that  I  had  expected. 
There  remains  about  a  fourth  of  it  to  do  next  year.  This  will 
not  prevent  the  garrison  or  traders  from  lodging  there  this  win- 
ter." That  his  own  services  should  not  be  overlooked  he  added : 
"  I  have  the  honor  to  inform  you,  Monseigneur,  that  my  jour- 
neys to  Niagara  have  occupied  nearly  five  months." 

Two  sets  of  plans  of  this  building,  drawn  by  de  Lery,  are  still 
preserved  in  Paris.  One  set  is  dated  Quebec,  January  19,  1727 
—  while  the  great  house  was  under  construction.  Later  plans, 
dated  1738,  endorsed  by  de  Lery  and  son,  show  substantially 
the  same  interior  arrangement ;  thus  indicating  that  for  a  num- 
ber of  years  the  structure  was  used  as  originally  designed. 

The  rear  of  the  structure  was  towards  Lake  Ontario.  The 
main  or  south  front  had  three  doors,  two  of  them  long  since 
converted  into  windows.  On  the  ground  floor,  at  the  right  of 
the  middle  vestibule,  were  the  store  where  barter  with  the  In- 
dians was  carried  on,  and  the  clerk's  room.  Opposite  was  the 
guard-room.  The  bakery,  with  its  outside  oven,  store-room 
for  provisions,  two  other  store-rooms  and  a  powder  magazine, 
were  ranged  along  the  north  side  of  the  corridor,  in  the  middle 
of  which  was  a  well.  The  elevation  shows  that  the  windows  of 
the  ground  floor  were  protected  with  iron  bars. 

An  interesting  feature  of  the  floor  above  was  the  chapel  with 
its  altar,  at  the  southwest  corner  of  the  building.  This  was 
discontinued  after  a  separate  chapel  was  built.  A  guard-room 
and  chambers  filled  most  of  this  floor,  except  at  the  northeast 
corner,  where  was  a  kitchen,  the  old  fireplace  of  which  may  still 
be  seen. 

The  stairs  are  to-day  as  originally  drawn  by  de  Lery.  The 
roof  and  great  chimneys  show  changes,  including  a  part  of  a 
structure  at  one  time  used  by  the  United  States  Government 
as  a  lighthouse. 

The  old  "  castle,"  or  "  mess  house,"  as  it  is  indifferently 
called,  still  stands,  probably  the  oldest  building  in  the  northern 
United  States  west  of  the  Mohawk,  the  scene  and  center  of 
stirring  and  significant  events  not  only  in  the  days  of  the  French 
but  throng])  the  stormy  vicissitudes  of  the  American  Revolu- 
tion and  the  War  of 


"  A  HOUSE  OF  PEACE  "  239 

De  Lery's  apprehensions  regarding  official  approval  of  his 
choice  of  site  for  Fort  Niagara  were  set  at  rest  the  next  spring 
by  the  following  letter  from  the  new  Minister  of  Marine : 

The  Marquis  de  Beauliarnois  and  M.  Dupuy  have  forwarded  to 
me  the  maps  and  plans  which  you  sent  to  them,  with  data  explain- 
ing your  reasons  for  building  the  Niagara  house  where  the  late  Mar- 
quis de  Denonville  had  reared  a  wooden  fort,  which  time  has  de- 
stroyed, instead  of  placing  it  at  the  portage  where  the  old  house 
stood.  His  Majesty  is  pleased  to  approve  it.  He  is  gratified  with 
your  zeal  and  the  diligence  with  which  you  have  conducted  the 
work.  .  .  .  The  Marquis  has  asked  for  you  the  Cross  of  St.  Louis.5 

While  the  King's  engineer  was  busy  with  the  plan  and  actual 
construction  of  the  fort,  Joncaire  and  his  long-time  friend 
and  associate,  the  younger  Longueuil,  were  fully  occupied  in 
keeping  the  savages  in  good  humor.  There  is  no  known  basis 
for  the  story  that  the  French,  resorting  to  stratagem,  planned 
a  hunt  which  should  draw  the  Indians  away  from  the  spot  un- 
til the  building  had  progressed  far  enough  to  serve  as  a  de- 
fense in  case  of  attack.0  Such  a  story  does  not  accord  with 
Joncaire's  known  relations  with  the  Scnecas. 

It  was  a  singular  council  that  was  held  on  the  Niagara  — 
probably  at  the  old  house  at  Lewiston  —  on  July  14,  1726, 
between  the  younger  de  Longueuil  and  representatives  of  the 
Five  Nations.  .Addressing  himself  to  the  officer,  one  of  the 
chiefs  referred  to  the  conference  of  the  preceding  spring,  and 
holding  out  a  wampum  belt,  said:  "I  perceive  my  death  ap- 

s  Maurepas  to  Chaussegros  de  Lery,  Brest,  May  13,  1727.  In  later  letters 
it  is  stated  that  M.  de  I.ery  was  to  receive  the  coveted  decoration  on  Sept. 
25,  1727. 

0  "  It  is  a  traditionary  story  that  the  mess  house,  which  is  a  very  strong 
building  and  the  largest  in  the  fort,  was  erected  by  stratagem.  A  consider- 
able, though  not  powerful,  body  of  French  troops  had  arrived  at  the  point. 
Their  force  was  inferior  to  the  surrounding  Indians,  of  whom  they  were 
under  some  apprehensions.  They  obtained  consent  of  the  Indians  to  build  a 
wigwam,  and  induced  them,  with  some  of  their  officers,  to  engage  in  an  ex- 
tensive hunt.  The  materials  had  been  made  ready  and  while  the  Indians 
were  absent  the  French  built.  When  the  parties  returned  at  night  they  had 
advanced  so  far  with  the  work  as  to  cover  their  faces  and  to  defend  them- 
selves against  the  savages  in  case  of  an  attack.''— "  The  Falls  of  Xiairara," 
by  Samuel  DeYeaux,  Buffalo,  IS;}!). 


AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 


<51 

Qs   tans  c&u-uattonj-  cu,  (CL  nouae//^  Lrnai<ron,  a 

u^a-la.  cottj  etc*  ftoucst-du/Jae,  Ontario,  a.  ./2/rfr«^  <&.  la.  &£i 


du.  cofc,  du-flor) 


auS^A  i&>  Gt>au*itL>. 


The:  great  stone  house  at  Fort  Niagara,  1727. 

From  the  original  plans  of  Chaussegros  de  Lerjr,  preserved  in  the  Archives 
of  the  Colonies,  Paris. 


"A  HOUSE  01'  PEACE" 


241 


/iu.  p 


remer  , 


Second  story  of  the  great  house,  as  planned  by  De  Lery. 
The  lower  story   ("  llez-de-chaussee'')   is  shown  on  the  opposite  page. 

preaching.  It  is  you  and  the  English  who  come  to  destroy  us. 
I  beg  you,  cease  your  work  until  I  may  hear  your  voice  another 
time.  Put  the  time  at  next  September,  when  I  will  show  you 
what  is  in  my  heart,  as  I  hope  you  will  open  yours  to  me." 

The  shrewd  commandant  of  Niagara  was  not  to  be  diverted 
from  his  purpose.  "  Here  is  your  belt,  my  son,"  he  said, 
taking  up  the  wampum.  "  I  fold  it  and  put  it  back  in  your 
bag."  The  return  of  the  wampum  always  signified  a  rejection 
of  proposals.  "  I  put  it  back,  not  purposing  to  discontinue 
the  works  which  they  have  sent  me  to  do  here.  I  hold  fast  to 
your  former  word,  which  consented  that  there  should  be  built 
here  a  new  and  large  house,  to  take  the  place  of  the  old  one, 
which  can  be  no  longer  preserved. 

"  I  do  not  consider  these  words  you  now  speak  as  coming 
from  you  Iroquois,  but  as  an  English  speech  which  shall  not  stop 
me.  Sec,  here  on  the  table  are  wine  and  tobacco,  which  go  bet- 
ter than  this  affair,  which  must  be  forgotten  and  which  I  reject.*' 

As  this  "  talk  "  was  not  confirmed  by  a  belt,  a  second  coun- 
cil was  held  at  the  unusual  hour  of  midnight  ("  tcnn  a  minult  "), 
at.  which  a  much  finer  belt  of  wampum  was  offered  and  ac- 
cepted, with  longer  speeches,  in  which  the  Senecas  promised 
to  stand  by  the  pledges  which  the  Onondagas  had  made.  '*  It 


242  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

is  not  only  for  the  present  that  I  speak,"  said  a  chief,  "  but 
for  always.  We  join  hands  for  good  business,  we  five  Iroquois 
nations,  and  may  we  always  keep  faith,  and  you  do  the  same 
on  your  side." 

At  the  very  outset  of  this  new  undertaking,  the  success  of 
which  he  had  so  much  at  heart,  Philippe  de  Rigaud,  Mar- 
quis de  Vaudreuil,  died  at  Quebec,  October  10,  1725,  and  was 
buried  in  the  church  of  the  Recollets  at  Chateau  St.  Louis. 
It  would  be  superfluous  here  to  enter  upon  a  review  of  his 
long  and  on  the  whole  successful  administration ;  but  it  is  per- 
tinent to  our  especial  study  to  recall  his  relations  to  the 
Niagara  region.  In  France,  as  early  as  1676,  he  had  served 
in  the  Royal  Musketeers.  In  the  year  of  his  arrival  in  Can- 
ada, 1687,  we  find  him  commanding  a  detachment  of  the  troops 
of  the  Marine,  engaging  in  the  Iroquois  compaign  with  Denon- 
ville,  and  sharing  in  the  establishment  of  the  ill-fated 
Fort  Denonville  at  the  mouth  of  the  Niagara.  The  knowl- 
edge of  the  region  gained  then,  undoubtedly  affected  his  direc- 
tion, throughout  many  years,  of  the  endeavors  of  Joncaire 
and  the  younger  de  Longueuil.  Soon  after  his  first  coming  to 
Niagara,  he  was  promoted  to  the  rank  of  captain,  for  gal- 
lantry in  the  defense  of  Quebec  against  Phipps.  He  was  dec- 
orated with  the  Cross  of  St.  Louis  for  a  successful  Indian  cam- 
paign; and  in  1698,  when  Callieres  succeeded  Frontenac  as 
Governor  of  Canada,  the  Chevalier  de  Vaudreuil  succeeded 
Callieres  as  Governor  of  Montreal.  It  was  in  1703  that  he 
again  followed  Callieres,  in  the  highest  office  of  the  colony. 
Though  not  a  Canadian  by  birth,  his  connections  by  marriage 
were  Canadian,  and  more  than  any  other  Governor  up  to  that 
time,  he  identified  himself  with  colonial  interests.  The  French 
in  military  or  civil  office  in  Canada  were  by  no  means  always 
devoted  to  the  welfare  of  the  country ;  but  Vaudreuil  seems 
for  the  most  part  to  have  served  it  like  a  patriot.  Throughout 
the  twenty-two  years  of  his  administration,  he  had  ever  in  view 
the  promotion  of  the  fur  trade,  the  extension  of  French  in- 
fluence on  the  Lakes.  His  master-stroke  in  these  efforts  was 
to  be  the  establishment  of  Fort  Niagara,  regarding  which  Louis 
XV  had  written  to  him  with  his  own  hand:  "The  post  of 


"  A  HOUSE  OF  PEACE  "  243 

Niagara  is  of  the  greatest  importance,  to  preserve  the  trade 
with  the  upper  countries."  The  King  no  clouht  had  derived  his 
impressions  from  Vaudreuil's  representations,  but  none  the  less, 
royal  sanction  was  useful.  No\v,  on  the  eve  of  achievement, 
his  hand  is  withdrawn  and  another  is  to  take  up  the  work. 

Louis  XV.  selected  as  the  successor  of  Vaudreuil,  Charles, 
Marquis  de  Beauharnois,  a  natural  son  of  Louis  XIV.  He 
had  been  an  office-holder  in  Canada  a  score  of  years  prior 
to  this  date,  having  in  1702  succeeded  M.  de  Champigny  as 
Intcndant.  In  1705  he  was  appointed  "  Director  of  the  Marine 
Classes  "  in  France,  but  he  was  captain  of  a  man-of-war  when, 
January  11,  1726,  Louis  XV  commissioned  him  to  be  Governor 
of  Canada,  an  office  which  he  was  to  administer  until  1747, 
thus  becoming  a  factor  of  no  little  consequence  in  the  particular 
history  that  we  arc  tracing.  In  the  interim  between  Vaudreuil's 
death  and  the  arrival  of  Beauharnois,  that  is,  until  September 
2,  1726,  the  first  Baron  de  Longueuil  was  the  chief  executor 
for  Canada.  He  solicited  the  governorship,  but  was  without 
influence;  the  Court,  it  is  said,  was  advised  not  to  appoint  a 
native  Canadian.  But  the  post  which  was  denied  him  was,  later 
on,  to  be  filled  by  his  son. 

Chabert  de  Joncaire  of  the  trading-house  at  the  portage 
is  spoken  of  at  this  period  as  the  commander  at  Niagara ;  ' 
it  is  not  plain,  however,  that  he  was  in  command  of  troops 
at  the  new  fort.  In  July,  1726,  the  son  of  the  lieutenant 
governor  of  Montreal  was  sent  with  a  small  body  of  men  to 
garrison  the  fort  and  complete  the  works.  This  man,  with 
whom  begins  a  succession  of  commandants  of  Fort  Niagara 
which  continues  to  the  present  day,  was  Charles  Le  Moyne  the 
second  —  Le  Moyne,  it  will  be  borne  in  mind,  being  the  family 
name  of  the  Baron  de  Longueuil.  The  first  of  that  title  was 
now  a  veteran  of  seventy  years.  The  new  commandant,  too, 
had  seen  many  years  of  service  for  the  King  in  America,  and 
had  been  on  the  Niagara  before  this  time.  As  earlv  as  1716 
he  had  made  a  campaign  bevond  Detroit,  into  the  Illinois  coun- 
try, and  had  been  reported  as  killed.  V\Y  have  noted  hn  great 
influence  with  the  Indians;  but  the  few  glimpses  afforded  of  him 

•  X.   Y.  Col.  Docs.,   IX,  (179. 


AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

in  the  official  documents  give  little  idea  of  his  personality,  save 
in  one  respect ;  he  was,  at  a  somewhat  later  period  than  we  are 
now  considering,  very  corpulent,  so  that,  in  the  language  of 
the  chronicle,  he  was  "  illy  adapted  for  travel."  He  was  forty 
years  old  when  he  came  to  command  the  new  fort  on  the  Niag- 
ara. Three  years  later  he  was  to  succeed,  on  the  death  of  his 
father,  to  the  title  and  estate  of  baron. 

It   should   not   be   overlooked   that    this   new   establishment, 
which  marked  a  new  advance  of  France   and  was  a  new  ex- 
pression of  that  Power,  short-lived  though  it  was  to  be,  in  the 
Lake  region  and  Mississippi  Valley,  identifies  with  the  story  of 
the  Niagara  a  scion  of  the  greatest   Canadian  family  of  its 
period,  and,  in  certain  aspects,  one  of  the  most  important  and 
influential  families  concerned  in  making  the  history  of  America. 
Charles  Le   Moyne  the  immigrant,   son   of  a  tavernkeeper   of 
Dieppe,  played  his  part  in  the  New  World  as  pioneer,  inter- 
preter,  and  trader,  marvelous!}7  prosperous   for  his  day  and 
opportunities.      But    the    family    fame    begins    with    his    many 
sons,  several  of  whom  appear  on  the  pages  of  Seventeenth  and 
Eighteenth  century  history  by  the  surnames  drawn  from  their 
seigneurial    rights    and   estates.      One   of   these    sons,    Charles, 
was  that  first  Baron  de  Longueuil  whom  we  have  seen  as  a  ma- 
jor  in   La   Barre's   expedition;   campaigning  with   Denonville 
against   the   Senecas ;   helping  in   the   establishment   of  the   ill- 
fated  fort  on  the  Niagara  which  was  built  in  1687,  and  subse- 
quently serving  his  King  in  many  capacities,  not  least  impor- 
tant of  which  was  that  as  negotiator  with  the  Iroquois,  thus 
paving  the   way   for   the   erection   of   the   new  Fort    Niagara. 
These  were  incidents  in  his  later  years  while  serving  as  lieu- 
tenant governor  of  Montreal.      In  his  more  youthful  days,  and 
while   his    numerous   younger   brothers   were   still    children,   he 
had   served   in   France ;   as   one   appreciative    student   has   ad- 
mirably   summed    it    up  — "  had,    with    his    Indian    attendant, 
figured  at  Court  as  related  by  the  Duchess  of  Orleans  in  one  of 
her   letters   to  her   sister,   the   Countess   Palatine   Louise:  had 
married  the  daughter  of  a  nobleman,  a  lady  in  waiting  to  her 
Roval  Highness  of  Orleans;  and  had  built  that  great  fortress- 
chateau   of  Longueuil,  the  marvel  of  statelincss  and  elegance 


"  A  HOUSE  OF  PEACE  "  245 

of  the  clay  for  all  Canada;  and  had  obtained  his  patent  of 
nobility  and  title  of  Baron."  8  Of  his  brothers,  six  —  Iberville, 
Saint  Helene,  Maricourt,  Serigny,  Bicnville,  Chateauguay  - 
have  written  their  names  on  the  continent  from  Hudson's  Bay 
to  the  Gulf  of  Mexico,  none  more  largely  or  lastingly  than 
Jean  Baptiste  Lc  Moyne,  who  as  Bicnville  is  known  as  the 
Father  of  Louisiana.  And  of  his  sons,  Charles  Lc  Moyne  the 
second,  born  in  HJ87,  was  the  captain,  the  chevalier  and  (on 
the  death  of  his  father)  the  second  Baron  de  Longueuil;  the 
adopted  son  of  the  Onondagas,  the  comrade  and  friend  of  Jon- 
cairc,  and  the  first  commandant  of  the  new  Fort  Niagara. 

A  glimpse  of  the  fort,  during  this  interesting  period  of 
construction,  is  afforded  by  a  letter  written  by  the  younger 
Longueuil  to  his  father  the  baron.  It  is  dated  "  Niagara, 
5th  September,  1726,"  and  runs  in  part  as  follows: 

There  are  no  more  English  at  Oswcgo  or  at  the  little  fall.  The 
last  canoe  which  has  gone  to  winter  had  to  go  on  to  Albany  to  find 
brandy,  and  they  assure  me  that  there  is  not  one  in  the  whole  length 
of  the  lake  or  the  river.  This  is  the  third  canoe  that  has  told  me 
the  same  thing.  If  I  meet  any  in  the  lake  or  going  down,  I  will  have 
them  pillaged. 

It  will  be  October  before  I  can  leave  here,  and  I  do  not  know 
wlicii  we  shall  have  finished.  Sickness  has  constantly  increased. 
We  have  now  more  than  thirty  men  attacked  by  fever,  and  I  find 
that  our  soldiers  resist  better  than  our  workmen.  If  they  could 
work,  we  should  not  have  enough  of  them  to  put  the  house  in  state 
of  security  this  month.  It  would  certainly  have  been  finished  this 
year,  but  for  the  sickness.  I  mean  the  stonework,  for  M.  de  Lery 
having  sent  away  the  sawyers,  we  have  not  enough  planks  to  half 
cover  it.  The  master-carpenter  is  sick  and  has  done  nothing  for 
fifteen  days.  We  shall  cover  what  we  can.  and  then  close  the  gable 
with  the  joist  of  the  scaffolding.  (".  .  .  bouchera  le  pignon  avec 
les  madriers  d'/'cJiafaiidaf/c."}  If  they  (the  gables)  are  not  en- 
tirely enclosed,  they  will  at  any  rate  be  protected  by  the  walls  all 
around. 

He  adds  that  as  soon  as  possible,  he  shall  send  back  the 
married  men,  who  arc  good-for-nothing  weepers  ("  les  pleureux 

8  Grace  King's  "  Xr\v  Orleans,"  p.   L3. 


246  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 


qui  nc  Talent  nV/i"),  no  doubt  a  true-enough  characterization 
of  the  home-loving  habitant,  who  in  the  savage-infested  wilder- 
ness of  the  Niagara  found  himself  homesick  even  to  tearfulness. 
Among  the  French  officers  at  Niagara  in  the  summer  of 
1726  was  Pierre  Jacques  Payen,  Captain  de  Noyan;  who 
wrote,  probably  in  the  fall  of  that  year,9  to  the  Marquis  de 
Beauharnois,  as  follows: 

As  I  believe,  monsieur,  that  you  have  not  recently  been  informed 
regarding  the  establishment  at  Niagara,  I  crave  the  honor  of  telling 
you  as  to  the  condition  of  the  house  when  I  left  there,  and  such  news 
as  I  learned  on  my  way. 

I  set  out  from  Niagara  the  8th  of  this  month.  The  works  would 
have  been  finished  by  this  time,  had  not  frequent  rains  and  the  vio- 
lent fevers  which  attacked  nearly  all  our  workmen,  long  delayed 
their  completion. 

There  remained  yet  twelve  or  fifteen  days'  work  of  masonry  to 
do,  and  there  is  reason  to  fear  that  the  timber  framework  is  not  yet 
ready  to  put  up.  Whatever  diligence  M.  de  Longueuil  may  have 
been  able  to  use,  he  could  not  procure  planks  enough  to  cover  it. 

The  letter  continues  with  a  graphic  account  of  negotiations 
between  the  English  and  the  Iroquois,  as  it  was  reported  to 
Captain  de  Noyan  at  Fort  Frontenac.  It  is  but  another  ver- 
sion of  the  unsuccessful  negotiations  of  Peter  Schuyler  —  this 
time  disguised  in  the  old  French  as  "  Joan  Sckuila."  "  You 
know,"  Schuyler  is  reported  to  have  harangued  to  the  tribes, 
"  you  know  that  the  French  are  building  a  fort  at  Niagara  in 
order  to  reduce  you  to  slavery  —  and  you  are  resting  with 
your  arms  crossed.  What  are  you  thinking  of?  We  are  all 
dead,  brothers,  you  and  I,  if  we  do  not  prevent  our  loss  by 
the  destruction  of  this  building.  Look  at  these  barques,  which 
will  carry  you  off  captive.  It  is  for  you  to  say  whether  they 
have  been  built  by  your  consent."  And  after  listening  to  more 

9  The  copy  of  M.  de  Xoyan's  letter  which  I  have  followed  in  the  Archives 
office  at  Ottawa,  bears  date  Feb.  22,  1726.  The  original  obviously  was 
written  some  months  later  than  that,  probably  in  September.  The  old 
form  of  indicating  September  —  "  7bre  "  —  may  very  likely  have  been  mis- 
read by  a  copyist.  September  22d  also  accords  with  the  date  of  a  report  by 
de  Xoyan,  given  in  an  abstract  of  despatches  relating  to  Niagara.  —  X.  Y. 
Col.  Docs.,  IX,  978. 


"  A  HOUSE  OF  TEACE  "  247 

in  like  strain,  the  Indians  returned  Schuyler's  wampum  belt, 
and  replied  with  cool  sarcasm  that  he  always  said  the  same 
thing  to  them.  "  Yes,"  they  added,  "  it  is  we  who  have  de- 
sired these  boats,  we  consented  to  what  our  son  [M.  de 
Longueuil]  asked  of  us,  we  repent  of  nothing.  ...  It  is  a 
thing  done.  We  have  given  our  word." 

It  was  at  this  council  that  Schuyler  asked  the  consent  of 
the  Five  Nations  for  the  English  to  build  a  trading-house  op- 
posite the  French  post  ["  butir  aussi  a  Niagara  une  maison 
vis-a-tis  cellc  dc  rotrc  PC  re  "]  ;  but  to  this  proposition  they 
returned  the  wampum,  saying  they  would  have  nothing  to  do 
with  it,  and  Schuyler  could  arrange  as  best  he  might  with 
"  Onontio."  There  is  a  triumphant  tone  in  Captain  de  Xoyan's 
letter,  reporting  this  defeat  of  the  English  at  so  critical  a 
time.  English  enmity  now  centered  on  Joncaire,  who  was  re- 
garded as  the  chief  instrument  of  their  discomfiture.  It  was 
reported  that  certain  Seneca  chiefs  were  bribed  to  make  way 
with  him.  One  of  the  few  letters  written  by  Joncaire  which 
are  preserved,  was  written  at  the  end  of  1726,  at  Fort  Niagara, 
apparently  to  his  friend  the  younger  Longueuil,  then  command- 
ing at  Fort  Frontenac.  It  runs  in  part  as  follows : 

NIAGARA,  26  December,  1726. 

I  am  obliged  to  you  for  the  notice  which  you  gave  me  by  your 
letter  of  December  28th,  concerning  the  council  which  was  held  be- 
tween the  Iroquois  nations  and  the  Governors  of  Boston  and  New 
York. 

Tagariuoghen,  chief  of  the  Sault  Ste.  Louis,  and  one  named 
Alexis,  chief  of  the  Lake  of  the  Two  Mountains,  have  just  acknowl- 
edged to  us  the  design  of  the  English,  and  the  promises  which  the 
Iroquois  made  to  them,  concerning  the  house  at  Niagara,  and  me.  I 
learned  the  same  thing  toward  the  end  of  November  at  the  Seneca 
village  where  I  had  gone,  after  giving  the  necessary  orders  for  the 
Niagara  garrison,  to  reply  to  a  belt  which  the  Iroquois  had  sent  to 
the  Governor  at  Montreal. 

I  found  in  this  village  only  coldness  towards  us  and  any  good 
words  which  I  could  say  to  them  were  scarcely  listened  to.  The  next 
night,  toward  midnight,  they  wakened  me  for  a  council;  and  being 
come  there,  they  begged  me  to  treat  peaceably  with  them,  that  there 
was  no  need  of  heat  on  the  part  of  any  of  us. 


248  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

First,  they  said,  the  house  at  Niagara  did  not  please  them;  that 
they  strongly  suspected  that  it  was  only  the  Onondagas  who  con- 
sented to  its  construction,  and  that  the  four  other  nations  had  no 
part  in  it. 

Second,  that  M.  de  Longueuil  had  promised  to  make  a  present  of 
three  barrels  of  powder  and  a  proportion  of  balls  to  each  nation, 
but  they  had  seen  nothing  of  all  that. 

They  held  out  to  me  a  belt  for  these  things,  but  I  would  not  touch 
it,  and  contented  myself  with  telling  them  that  their  belt  was  a  rat- 
tlesnake which  would  bite  me  if  I  took  it  in  my  hand,  and  that 
moreover  their  father  Onontio  had  sent  me  to  Niagara  to  listen  to 
good  words  and  not  to  bad. 

As  to  the  house  in  question,  it  was  the  strongest  pillar  of  the  five 
Iroquois  nations,  since  M.  de  Longueuil  had  intended  in  making  it 
to  deliver  them  from  the  slavery  in  which  they  had  for  a  long  time 
been.  But  [I  said],  as  I  saw  that  I  was  speaking  to  deaf  men,  I 
told  them  that  they  might  make  their  speeches  to  people  who  knew 
how  to  answer.  The  Iroquois  replied: 

"  We  hear  you.  You  say  that  we  should  address  Onontio.  That 
was  indeed  our  first  thought,  for  our  resolution  is  made  for  next 
spring." 

The  next  day  I  noised  it  about  that  I  saw  clearly  that  their  minds 
were  divided,  but  that  I  hoped  that  they  would  find  for  us,  as  much 
as  for  the  English,  and  that  it  was  useless  for  them  to  talk  to  me  of 
abandoning  the  building  ("  de  vider  le  plancher  ") ,  they  could  be 
assured  that  I  should  not  quit  Niagara  until  they  had  cut  my  body 
to  pieces  to  give  pleasure  to  the  English  —  and  that  even  then  they 
would  have  to  deal  with  people  who  would  come  to  look  after  my 
bones.  I  have  still  a  trick  ("  un  plat  de  mon  metier ")  to  show 
them  in  the  spring  —  I  put  it  aside  till  then,  since  my  emissaries  are 
not  at  the  village,  and  whether  it  succeeds  or  not  I  shall  promptly 
send  my  two  oldest  sons  to  Montreal  to  inform  my  superiors  of  the 
state  of  affairs  in  this  country. 

One  must  restrain  the  Iroquois  [?  Senecas]  in  every  way  in  this 
present  affair,  but  it  is  necessary  to  interpose  the  Onondagas,  and 
say  to  the  Iroquois  nations:  Since  when  do  you  make  no  longer 
one  body  with  the  Onondagas  ?  You  have  told  us  every  year  that 
what  one  Iroquois  nation  docs  or  says,  all  the  others  agree  to. 
Since  when  is  all  that  changed?  How  comes  it  that  when  the  Eng- 
lish ask  you  which  nation  it  was  that  gave  permission  to  the  French 
to  build  at  Niagara,  that  in  the  presence  of  you  all  the  Onondaga 


"A  HOUSE  OF  PEACE" 

replied  fiercely,  "  It  was  I."  How  happens  it  that  you  did  not  dis- 
pute this  before  the  English? 

After  all,  I  hope  that  the  Holy  Spirit  which  commonly  gives  to 
those  who  govern  the  State  more  light  than  to  others,  will  furnish 
enough  means  to  our  superiors  to  confound  the  Iroquois  and  so 
reestablish  peace. 

As  for  me,  trust  to  my  looking  out  for  myself  against  the  assassi- 
nation which  the  English  have  at  all  times  wished  to  accomplish. 
Whoever  undertakes  it  will  have  half  the  risk.  I  will  serve  him 
as  they  do  in  Valenciennes. 

I  beg  you  to  communicate  what  I  send  you  to  Messieurs  de 
Beauharnois,  to  the  Intendant,  and  to  our  Governor  at  Montreal,  and 
above  all  to  so  inform  M.  de  Longueuil  that  he  will  be  assured  of 
the  care  which  I  take  in  the  present  affair. 

A  little  later  Joncaire  wrote  again  to  the  younger  de 
Longueuil  at  Fort  Frontenac : 

".  .  .  Inform  our  superiors  of  what  has  happened  to  me 
in  this  country.  It  is  for  them  to  direct  what  I  should  say 
and  do.  The  Iroquois  will  go  down  to  Montreal  next  spring 
to  demand  that  we  pull  down  the  house  at  Niagara.  If  they 
destroy  it,"  adds  Joncaire  with  a  fine  touch  of  the  Gascon,  "  it 
will  only  be  when  I,  at  the  head  of  my  garrison,  shall  have 
crossed  in  Charon's  barque  —  I  shall  show  them  the  road  to 
victory  or  to  the  tomb."  Nevertheless,  he  adds  the  fervent 
hope:  "May  God  change  the  hearts  of  those  who  are  against 
us." 

It  was  not  until  the  end  of  another  season  —  October  17, 
1727  —  that  Chaussegros  de  Lery  reported  to  the  Minister 
that  the  house  at  Niagara  was  entirely  finished,  surrounded 
with  palisades  and  furnished  with  a  guard-house  to  prevent  sur- 
prise by  the  savages.  Referring  to  the  English  at  Oswego, 
he  could  not.  refrain  from  calling  attention  to  the  fact  that 
events  had  justified  his  choice  of  site  for  Fort  Niagara:  '"  The 
English  are  established  at  the  mouth  of  Oswego  River,  they  have 
built  a  little  fortified  work  ["  petite  redoubt  a  machicoulis  "] 
and  keep  a  garrison  there.  The  French  have  always  been  mas- 
ters of  this  post  and  of  the  south  side  of  Lake  Ontario.  If 
they  had  built  the  stone  house  as  proposed  at  the  portage,  it 


250  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

is  certain  that  the  English  would  have  made  another  on  Lake 
Ontario.  This  house  at  the  portage  appears  to  me  useless. 
The  old  one,  with  some  small  repairs,  will  serve  yet  some  years." 
He  adds  that  if  he  "  had  been  the  master  "  the  last  year  it 
would  have  been  easy  for  him  to  establish  the  French  at  Oswego 
as  well  as  at  Niagara ;  evidently  forgetting  for  the  moment 
that  he  had  not  established  the  French  anywhere,  however 
satisfactory  from  an  engineering  point  of  view  his  services 
on  the  Niagara  had  proved.  Our  study  of  the  documents 
makes  clear  that  Fort  Niagara  was  made  possible,  under  the 
encouraging  policy  of  Vaudreuil,  only  by  the  devotion  and 
personal  influence  of  the  younger  de  Longueuil  and  the  elder 
Chabert  de  Joncaire. 

Left  to  themselves,  without  provocation  from  the  English, 
the  Senecas  and  neighboring  tribes  would  have  found  Fort 
Niagara  a  blessing.  They  did  indeed,  so  find  it  for  a  good 
many  years.  At  a  conference  between  Beauharnois  and  the 
Onondagas,  August  19,  1734,  the  Indians  spoke  of  the  good- 
ness of  the  French  Governor  in  sending  Joncaire  10  to  them. 
In  the  same  speech  the  Onondaga  orator,  holding  out  a  wam- 
pum belt,  said : 

"  Father,  here  is  an  old  message  we  bring  back  to  you.  It 
was  given  to  the  Five  Iroquois  Nations,  nine  years  ago,  by 
our  late  son,  Longueuil,  when  the  house  at  Niagara  was  built. 
He  promised  that  it  would  be  a  House  of  Peace  for  us  and 
for  our  children,  down  to  the  third  generation  and  farther; 
he  assured  us  also,  that  we  should  enjoy  the  peace  that  he 
attached  to  that  House.  Nothing  afforded  us  more  pleasure, 
and  we  pray  you  to  give  us  assurance  of  the  promise,  by  re- 
newing it  to  us." 

"  I  assure  you,"  replied  the  Governor,  "  that  the  House 
at  Niagara  will  be  a  House  of  Peace  for  you  and  your  chil- 
dren, as  long  as  you  please." 

10  Philippe  Thomas,  eldest  son  of  the  Joncaire  whose  story  we  have 
traced. 


CHAPTER  XIV 

A  TROL'BLKSOME  TREATY 

POLITICAL  ASPECT  OF  THE  STRIFE  ON  THE  NIAGARA  —  THE  TACT- 
FUL COURSE  OF  GOVERNOR  BURNET  —  FORT  NIAGARA  AND  THE 
FUR  TRADE  —  INCIDENTS  OF  A  PICTURESQUE  TRAFFIC. 

WHAT  may  be  termed  the  political  situation  in  the  country 
of  the  Six  Nations,  and  (-'.specially  among  the  Senecas  who 
kept  the  Western  Door  of  the  Long  House,  in  the  years  from 
the  building  of  Joncaire's  house  at  Lewiston  to  the  construc- 
tion and  garrisoning  of  Fort  Niagara,  1720-26,  admirably 
illustrates  the  difficulty  of  treating  with  the  Indian.  Even 
the  noble  Iroquois  was  fickle,  given  to  double-dealing;  yet 
it  was  a  duplicity  inherent  in  a  lower  degree  of  social  develop- 
ment than  that  from  which  his  Caucasian  tempters  approached 
him.  The  wisest  of  their  sachems  were  statesmen  in  some  mat- 
ters, children  in  others.  The  Senecas  adopted  Joncaire  ac- 
cording to  their  ancient  custom,  and  through  him  gave  the 
French  their  foothold  on  the  Niagara.  At  the  same  time, 
tempted  by  the  trade  inducements  of  the  English,  they  helped 
the  Western  tribes  to  go  to  Albany,  to  the  confusion  of  the 
French,  and  allowed  the  English  to  get  and  to  keep  a  footing 
in  their  own  territory. 

So  matters  continued  until  Longueuil,  by  his  coup  de  maltre 
of  1725,  gained  permission  in  a  council  at  Onondaga  to  build 
what  soon  proved  to  be  a  fort,  in  Seneca  territory.  We  have 
already  traced  the  steps  of  that  construction,  as  recorded  in 
the  reports  of  the  French.  When  Burnet  heard  of  it,  as  he 
speedily  did,  down  in  New  York,  he  may  well  have  wondered 
what  all  his  fair  speeches  to  the  Indians  had  accomplished, 
what  all  the  tiresome  councils  had  amounted  to,  of  what  avail 
the  many  lavish  gifts. 

At  the  September  council  at  Albany  in  1726  he  took  the  tribes 
to  task.  How  is  it,  he  demanded,  have  you  given  your  consent 

to  the  French,  to  build  this  house  at  Niagara?     The  answer 

251 


AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

was  characteristic,  but  far  from  satisfactory.  One  Ajewach- 
tha,  an  Onondaga  sachem,  was  the  mouthpiece  for  the  occasion. 
When  Longueuil  was  among  the  Onondagas  last  year,  said  the 
sachem,  the  Senecas  heard  what  his  errand  was,  and  "  sent  a 
Belt  of  Wampum,  .  .  .  that  in  case  the  French  should  desire 
to  make  any  Building  or  Settlement  at  Niagara  or  at  Ochs- 
weeke  l  or  elsewhere  on  land,  they  should  not  give  their  consent 
to  it.  ...  The  Onondagas  being  prevail'd  upon  by  Fair 
speeches  and  promises,  rejected  the  Sinnekes  belt,  and  gave  the 
French  leave  for  building  at  Niagara."  De  Longueuil,  the 
sachem  added,  had  promised  that  the  French  would  protect 
them  for  three  hundred  years. 

Did  the  land  at  Niagara,  asked  Governor  Burnet,  belong 
to  the  Onondagas,  or  to  the  Senecas,  or  to  all  the  Six  Nations? 

The  Seneca  sachem,  Kanaharighton,  replied  that  it  be- 
longed to  the  Senecas  particularly. 

Do  the  sachems  of  the  other  Five  Nations  acknowledge 
that? 

They  all  said  it  did ;  not  only  the  land  at  Niagara  belonged 
to  the  Senecas,  but  the  land  opposite  it,  on  the  other  side  of 
Lake  Ontario. 

What  business  then,  asked  Burnet,  had  the  Onondagas  to 
grant  the  French  permission  to  build  there,  when  the  land  be- 
longed only  to  the  Senecas? 

"  The  Onondagas  say  it  is  true  they  have  done  wrong,  they 
might  better  have  left  it  alone  and  have  left  it  to  the  Sinnekes 
whose  Land  it  is,  they  repent  of  it  and  say  that  People  often 
do  what  they  afterwards  repent  of." 

The  Onondaga  further  explained  that  the  consent  which 
had  been  given  by  his  people,  without  leave  of  the  other  na- 
tions, was  in  accordance  with  their  old  customs ;  one  nation 
often  spoke  in  the  name  of  all  the  rest  in  the  League.  If  the 
others  afterwards  approved  of  it,  it  was  well ;  if  any  of  them 
disapproved,  the  pledge  was  void.  The  Six  Nations  had  sent 
Seneca  and  Onondaga  sachems  with  a  belt  of  wampum  to  the 
French  at  Fort  Niagara,  to  protest  against  the  proceedings 

i  "  Called  by  the  French  Lac  Erie." — Marginal  note  in  New  York  Coun- 
cil  Minutes,   XV,  87. 


A  TROUBLESOME  TREATY  253 

and  ordering  the  work  to  stop.  But  the  French  had  not  the 
red  man's  regard  for  the  talking  belts.  We  can  not  stop  work, 
they  said,  with  what  show  of  gravity  and  regret  may  be  im- 
agined ;  "  being  sent  and  order'd  by  the  Governour  of  Canada 
to  build  it,"  they  "  durst  not  desist  from  working."  But  they 
readily  promised  that  Joncaire,  who  was  soon  going  to  Mont- 
real, should  inform  the  Governor  that  the  Six  Nations  wished 
the  work  stopped;  "he  would  bring  back  an  Answer  at  Onon- 
daga  by  the  latter  end  of  September  (when  the  Indian  corn  was 
ripe),  and  then  they  threw  their  Belt  back  and  rejected  it  by 
which  they  had  spoke,  and  said  they  thought  they  were  sent  by 
the  Govr  of  New  York,  on  which  they  [the  sachems]  replyed 
that  they  were  not  sent  by  him,  but  by  the  Sachims  of  the 
Six  Nations,  and  did  not  know  who  had  given  the  French  that 
liberty,  that  they  did  not  know  it,  and  desired  that  they  would 
name  the  Sachims  who  had  given  their  leave,  on  which  they 
[the  French]  did  not  reply,  but  said  that  when  the  House  was 
finished  30  souldiers  would  be  posted  there  with  Officers  and 
a  Priest." 

This  and  much  more  the  Indians  told  Governor  Burnet.  In 
the  same  breath,  the  Onondagas  took  all  the  blame  to  them- 
selves, and  charged  the  French  with  perfidy.  The  Governor 
adroitly  explained  to  them  that  France  and  England  were 
at  peace,  and  gave  them  to  understand  that  it  was  not  the 
English,  but  the  Six  Nations,  whose  interests  were  threatened 
by  the  new  fort  at  the  mouth  of  the  Niagara.  He  read  to 
them  that  portion  of  the  Treaty  of  Utrecht  which  bore  on  the 
matter.  The  chief  question,  he  gravely  pointed  out,  was, 
whether  the  fort  was  prejudicial  to  them  in  their  hunting,  or 
to  the  Western  Indians  who  might  wish  to  come  for  trade.  If 
thev  said  it  was  not,  1 1  is  Excellency  had  nothing  to  say,  and 
the  French  had  done  well ;  but  if  the  Six  Nations  found 
it  prejudicial  to  their  interests,  and  complained  of  it.  to  him, 
he  would  lav  the  matter  before  the  English  King.  The  In- 
dians replied: 

"  Brother  Corlaer,  .  .  .  you  ask  if  we  approve  of  the  build- 
ing at  Niagara;  we  do  not  only  complain  against  the  proceed- 
ings of  the  French  in  fortifying  Niagara  on  our  Land  contrary 


254  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

to  our  inclination  and  without  our  consent,  to  pen  us  up  from 
our  chief  hunting-place,  but  we  also  humbly  beg  and  desire 
that  Your  Excell:  will  be  pleased  to  write  to  His  Majesty  King 
George  that  he  may  have  compassion  on  us,  and  write  to  the 
King  of  France  to  order  his  Governour  of  Canada  to  remove 
the  building  at  Niagara,  for  we  think  it  very  prejudicial  to 
us  all."  And  this  the  Governor  agreed  to  do. 

Nothing  could  be  finer  than  the  temper  and  adroitness  with 
which  Burnet  conducted  this  matter.  At  the  opening  of  the 
conference  his  attitude  was  that  of  accuser,  of  one  deeply 
wronged ;  the  attitude  of  the  Indians  that  of  culprits  and 
deceivers.  This  aspect  of  their  relations  was  quickly  annulled 
by  the  calm,  judicial  air  which  the  Governor  gave  to  his  in- 
quiries. With  rare  insight  into  Indian  character,  he  so  pre- 
sented the  case  that  they  became  the  wronged  parties,  the 
French  the  sole  offenders,  and  himself  merely  the  gracious  friend 
who  sought  to  do  all  he  could  in  their  behalf. 

This  conference  was  held  on  September  7th.  Two  days  later, 
the  Governor  made  a  long,  impressive  speech  to  the  sachems. 
He  reviewed  the  relations  of  the  Five  Nations  to  the  French 
from  the  earliest  days,  not  failing  to  show  that  the  latter  had 
been  constant  aggressors  and  treacherous  enemies,  and  he  pic- 
tured the  building  of  the  fort  at  Niagara  as  a  new  affront, 
which  endangered  the  very  existence  of  the  Confederacy.  His 
words  had  their  intended  effect.  The  sachems  renewed  their 
protestations,  in  terms  of  singular  earnestness.  "  We  speak 
now,"  said  Kanackarighton,  the  Seneca,  "  in  the  name  of  all 
the  Six  Nations  and  come  to  you  howling.  This  is  the  reason 
for  what  we  howl,  that  the  Governor  of  Canada  incroaches  on 
our  land  and  builds  thereon,  therefore  do  we  come  to  Your  Ex- 
cellency, our  Brother  Corlaer,  and  desire  you  will  be  pleased 
to  write  to  the  great  King,  your  Master,  and  if  Our  King  will 
then  be  pleased  to  write  to  the  King  of  France,  that  the  Six 
Nations  desire  that  the  Fort  at  Niagara  may  be  demolished. 
This  Belt  we  give  to  you,  Our  Brother  [Corlaer],  as  a  token 
that  you  be  not  negligent  to  write  to  the  King,  the  sooner  the 
better,  and  desire  that  the  letter  may  be  writ  very  pressing." 

Not    the    least    gratifying    poinl    to    the    Governor    in    this 


A  TROUBLESOME  TREATY  255 

harangue  was  the  expression  "  our  King."  The  treaty  com- 
missioners at  Utrecht,  thirteen  years  before,  had  agreed  that 
the  New  York  Indians  were  subjects  of  Great  Britain;  but  the 
Indians  themselves  were  sometimes  provokingly  oblivious  of  the 
relationship. 

Governor  Burnet  took  advantage  of  the  complaisant  and 
suppliant  mood  of  the  sachems  to  suggest  that,  since  they 
were  asking  the  King  of  Great  Britain  to  protect  them  in  their 
own  lands,  it  would  be  most  proper  "  to  submit  and  give  up 
all  their  hunting  Country  to  the  King,  and  to  sign  a  deed  for 
it,"  as  it  had  been  proposed  to  do  twenty-five  years  before. 
He  intimated  that  had  it  been  done  then,  they  would  have  had 
a  fuller  measure  of  protection  from  the  English.  After  con- 
sultations, the  proposition  was  accepted,  and  the  deed  of  trust, 
which  had  been  executed  July  19,  1701,  was  confirmed  and 
signed  by  Seneca,  Cayuga  and  Onondaga  sachems.  Thus  at 
Albany,  September  14,  1726,  in  the  thirteenth  year  of  George 
I,  was  deeded  to  the  English,  a  sixty-mile  strip  along  the  south 
shore  of  Lake  Ontario,  reaching  to  and  including  the  entire 
Niagara  frontier. 

The  mighty  League  of  the  Iroquois  had  atoned  for  their 
blunder  of  letting  the  French  build  Fort  Niagara  in  their  do- 
main, by  giving  it  to  King  George.  From  this  time  on  the 
"  stone  house  "  was  on  British  soil ;  but  it  was  yet  to  take  the 
new  owner  a  generation  to  dispossess  the  obnoxious  tenant. 

The  Albany  conferences  ended,  after  the  usual  gift-giving 
and  feasting,  the  Iroquois  deputies  leisurely  departed  by  trail 
and  river,  to  their  several  seats  to  the  westward.  Burnet 
journeyed  down  to  New  York,  where  on  September  27th  he 
made  report  to  the  Council  at  Fort  George,  of  all  he  had  con- 
certed with  the  Six  Nations.  "  I  flatter  myself,"  he  said,  "  that 
I  have  contributed  not  a  little  to  fix  them  in  their  duty  to  his 
Majesty,  their  affection  to  this  Government,  and  their  just 
apprehensions  of  the  ill  designs  of  the  people  of  Canada  in 
fortifying  so  near  to  them  at  lagara."  The  next  winter  he 
sent  a  man  to  live  among  the  Senecas,  but  not  to  trade  with 
them.  Whoever  this  representative  was,  or  what  his  success, 

-Journal,    Legislative   Council;    reprint,    Albany,    ISlil,  p.   o!]!). 


256  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

he  counted  but  little  against  the  activities  of  Joncaire.  A  year 
later  (September  30,  1727),  Burnet  assured  the  Council  that 
this  agent  had  been  "  very  active  .  .  .  that  pressing  instances 
might  be  made  at  the  Court  of  France  against  the  stone  house 
at  Niagara."  3 

The  fifteenth  Article  of  the  Treaty  of  Utrecht  is  as  follows : 

The  subjects  of  France  inhabiting  Canada,  and  others,  shall  in 
future  give  no  hindrance  or  molestation  to  the  Five  Nations  or 
Cantons  of  Indians,  subject  to  the  Dominion  of  Great  Britain,  nor 
to  the  other  natives  of  America  who  are  in  friendly  alliance  with 
them.  In  like  manner,  the  subjects  of  Great  Britain  shall  behave 
themselves  peaceably  towards  the  Americans  who  are  subjects  or 
friends  of  France,  and  they  shall  enjoy,  on  both  sides,  full  liberty  of 
resort  for  purposes  of  Trade.  Also  the  natives  of  these  countries 
shall,  with  equal  freedom,  resort,  as  they  please,  to  the  British  and 
French  Colonies,  for  promoting  trade  on  one  side  and  the  other, 
without  any  molestation  or  hindrance  on  the  part  either  of  British 
or  French  subjects;  but  who  are,  and  who  ought  to  be,  accounted 
subjects  and  friends  of  Britain  or  of  France  is  a  matter  to  be  accu- 
rately and  distinctly  settled  by  Commissioners. 

This  was  assented  to  by  the  representatives  of  England  and 
of  France,  who  signed  the  treaty  of  which  it  is  a  part,  at 
Utrecht,  April  11,  1713.  In  due  time  it  was  promulgated  in 
the  Colonies.  England  in  the  Valley  of  the  Mohawk,  and 
France  on  the  Great  Lakes,  were  at  work,  with  such  seductive 
influences  as  they  could  exert,  for  the  friendship  of  the  sav- 
ages and  a  greater  profit  from  the  fur  trade.  It  was  not,  how- 
ever, until  Joncaire's  cabin  stood  at  the  foot  of  the  Niagara 
rapids,  that  the  English  took  genuine  alarm  at  what  they  re- 
garded as  the  impudent  encroachment  of  the  French,  and  fell 
back  upon  the  terms  of  the  treaty  for  a  definition  of  rights. 

It  has  been  related,  that  in  1721  Governor  Burnet  made 
a  spirited  protest  against  the  establishment  of  Joncaire's  trad- 
ing house,  of  which  Vaudreuil  had  made  an  equally  spirited,  but 
not  equally  logical,  defense.  Protests  of  this  sort  being  so  ob- 
viously of  no  avail,  correspondence  on  the  subject  between  the 

s  Ib.,  p.  .055. 


A  TROUBLESOME  TREATY  257 

Governors  seems  to  have  ceased.  But  when  word  reached  Bur- 
net  of  the  new  fort  at  the  mouth  of  the  river  his  ire  was  kin- 
dled afresh.  On  July  5,  1726,  he  wrote  to  M.  de  Longueuil, 
then  acting  Governor,  pending  the  arrival  of  Beauharnois,  a 
vigorous,  but  by  no  means  offensive  letter  on  the  subject.  He 
had  learned,  he  wrote,  that  about  a  hundred  Frenchmen  were 
at  Niagara,  commencing  the  erection  of  a  fort,  "  with  the  de- 
sign of  shutting  in  the  Five  Nations,  and  preventing  the  free 
passage  of  the  other  Indians  at  that  point  to  trade  with  us 
as  they  have  been  in  the  habit  of  doing."  He  expressed  his 
surprise  that  the  French  should  undertake  a  project  so  ob- 
viously an  infraction  of  the  Treaty  of  Utrecht ;  denied  that 
La  Salle's  brief  occupancy  of  the  region  gave  the  French  any 
rights,  and  reminded  the  Governor  that  the  lands  at  Niagara 
belonged  to  the  Five  Nations.  "  Should  the  fortifying  Niag- 
ara be  continued,"  he  added  in  conclusion,  "  I  shall  be  under 
the  necessity  of  representing  the  matter  to  my  Superiors,  in 
order  that  the  Court  of  France,  being  well  informed  of  the 
fact,  may  give  its  opinion  thereupon ;  as  I  have  heard  that  it 
has  already  expressed  its  disapprobation  of  the  part  Mr.  de 
Vaudreuil  took  in  the  War  of  the  Abenaquis  against  New  Eng- 
land." 4 

Burnet  sent  his  friend  Philip  Livingston,  of  the  Colonial 
Council,  to  Montreal  with  this  letter,  and  begged  of  M.  de 
Longueuil  considerate  treatment  of  the  messenger.  The  mes- 
senger was  well  enough  received,  but  the  reply  which  the  Cana- 
dian soldier  sent  back,  under  date  of  August  16th,  was  far 
from  apologetic.  "  Permit  me,  Sir,  to  inform  you,"  it  ran, 
"  that  it  is  not  my  intention  to  shut  in  the  Five  Iroquois  Na- 
tions, as  you  pretend,  and  that  I  do  not  think  I  contravene  the 
Utrecht  Treaty  of  Peace  in  executing  my  orders  from  the 
Court  of  France,  respecting  the  reestablishment  of  the  Niagara 

*  French  translations  of  several  of  Burnet's  letters  are  preserved  in 
the  Correspnn<Im\r(>  (,'t'ut'rale;  also  a  translation  of  a  letter  relating  to 
Niagara,  from  the  Duke  of  Newcastle  to  Walpole,  dated  "  Vitehall " 
[Whitehall],  May  lo,  17-2(5;  and  the  various  memoirs  regarding  Niagara 
which  were  prepared  during  the  discussion;  one  of  them  makes  JO  closely- 
written  folio  pages,  in  the  Canadian  Archives  transcript.  Their  purport 
is  sufficiently  shown  in  our  narrative. 


258  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

post,  whereof  we  have  been  the  masters  from  all  time.  The 
Five  Nations,  who  are  neither  your  subjects  nor  ours,  ought 
to  be  much  obliged  to  you  to  take  upon  you  an  uneasiness  they 
never  felt,  inasmuch  as,  so  far  from  considering  that  the  estab- 
lishment at  Niagara  may  prove  a  source  of  trouble  to  them, 
they  were  parties  to  it  by  a  unanimous  consent,  and  have  again 
confirmed  it  in  the  last  Council  holden  at  Niagara,  on  the  14th 
of  July  last." 

De  Longueuil,  it  will  be  observed,  squarely  contradicted  the 
clause  in  the  treaty  which  declared  the  Five  Nations  to  be  "  sub- 
ject to  the  dominion  of  Great  Britain."  His  audacity  was 
symbolical  of  the  entire  policy  of  France  on  the  wilderness 
frontiers  at  this  period.  This  feature  of  Baron  de  Longueuil's 
reply  may  well  have  surprised  the  English  Governor.  It  would, 
no  doubt,  have  surprised  him  still  more  had  Longueuil  meekly 
yielded  to  his  demands,  and  promised  to  leave  the  Niagara. 
It  was  to  be  expected  that  he  would  base  the  French  claim 
on  the  flimsy  pretext  of  continuous  right  from  La  Salle's  day ; 
but  that,  in  addition  to  this  claim,  he  should  have  the  effrontery 
to  deny  and  defy  the  plain  declaration  of  the  treaty,  was  matter 
for  amazement. 

As  we  have  seen,  at  the  Albany  conferences  with  the  In- 
dians, in  September,  Burnet  had  promised  to  lay  the  case  — 
their  case,  as  he  made  it  appear  to  them  —  before  the  King. 
With  his  unfruitful  correspondence  with  Longueuil  fresh  in 
mind  he  was  more  than  willing  to  do  so.  Before  the  close  of 
the  year  —  presumably  by  the  first  ship  that  served,  which  hap- 
pened to  be  the  Old  Beaver,  Mathew  Smith,  master, —  he  dis- 
patched long  letters  on  the  subject,  both  to  the  Lords  of  Trade 
and  to  the  Duke  of  Newcastle,  King  George's  Secretary  of 
State.  For  the  edification  of  the  former,  he  rehearsed  at 
length  all  that  had  taken  place;  told  of  the  action  taken  at 
the  conferences  with  the  Indians;  exulted  a  little,  as  was  nat- 
ural, in  announcing  that  they  had  signed  a  deed  surrendering 
the  land  they  lived  in  to  the  British  Crown ;  and  enclosed  a 
copy  of  the  deed  with  this  explanation  of  the  fact  that  it  was 
signed  by  only  three  of  the  nations :  "  The  Maquese  [Mo- 
hawks] and  Oneydes  live  nearest  to  us,  and  do  not  reach  to 


A  TROUBLESOME  TREATY  259 

the  French  lake,  and  therefore  there  was  no  occasion  to  men- 
tion the  matter  to  them,  and  if  I  had  proposed  it  publickly  to 
them,  it  might  soon  have  been  known  by  the  French,  and  have 
produced  some  new  enterprise  of  theirs,  so  that  I  thought  it 
best  to  do  it  with  a  few  of  the  chief  and  most  trusty  of  the 
three  nations  who  border  upon  the  Lakes." 

He  sent  to  the  Lords  copies  of  his  correspondence  with 
Longueuil,  and  called  especial  attention  to  that  officer's  denial 
of  the  Treaty.  "  The  Treaty  says,"  wrote  Burnet,  "  *  The 
five  Nations  or  Cantons  of  Indian*,  subject  to  the  Dominion 
of  Great  Britain.''  Mr.  Ue  Longueuil  denys  it  expressly  and 
says,  *  Les  cinq  Xations  qui  ne  sont  ny  ro.v  Sujets  ny  les 
Xotrcs.'  The  Five  Xations  who  are  neither  your  Subjects  nor 
ours."  He  pointed  out  the  other  aggravating  and  inconsist- 
ent features  of  Longueuil's  letter. 

To  His  Grace  the  Duke  the  Governor  made  a  more  concise 
but  equally  strenuous  report,  adding  his  "  most  earnest  appli- 
cation "  that  Newcastle  would  *'  obtain  His  Majesty's  direc- 
tions, that  strong  instances  may  be  made  at  the  Court  of 
France  for  this  purpose,  which  I  hope  will  be  successful  at  a 
time  when  there  is  so  firm  an  alliance  between  the  two  Crowns. 
.  .  .  This  is  a  matter  of  such  consequence  to  His  Majesty's 
Dominions  in  North  America  that  I  humbly  rely  on  Your 
Grace's  obtaining  such  a  redress,  as  the  Treaty  entitles  this 
Province  and  the  Six  Nations  to,  from  the  French,  which  can 
be  [no]  less  than  a  demolition  of  this  fort  at  Niagara."  ;j 

The  Duke  of  Newcastle  put  the  whole  matter  into  the  hands 
of  Horatio  YYalpole,  with  instructions  from  King  George  that 
he  should  present  it  '*  in  its  full  light  "  to  the  Ministers  of  the 
Court  of  France,  "  and  to  use  all  the  necessary  arguments  to 
prevail  on  them  to  dispatch  orders  to  the  officer  commanding 
in  Canada  to  demolish  that  fort,  and  His  Majesty  doubts  not 
but  they  will  comply  as  soon  as  they  shall  be  informed  pre- 
cisely of  the  state  of  this  affair."  Walpole  prepared  a 
memoir  on  Fort  Niagara  which  he  submitted,  May  9,  17~7,  to 

r>  Burnet  to  the  Duke  of  Newcastle.   X.  Y..  Dee.    1,  IT-Jfi. 
'••Duke  of  Newcastle  to  the   Hon.    Horatio  Walpole,  Whitehall,  April  11, 
1727. 


260  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

the  aged  Cardinal  de  Fleury,  Prime  Minister  of  France.7  In 
it  lie  rehearsed  at  length  the  grievances  which  Burnet  had 
communicated.  Beyond  the  employment  of  a  more  polished 
style,  Walpole's  memoir  on  Niagara  added  nothing  to  the 
facts  or  the  arguments  as  we  have  already  reviewed  them.  At 
the  end  of  his  recital  of  facts,  Walpole  added  the  following: 

It  is  to  be  remarked,  that  the  Nations  in  question  are  formally  ac- 
knowledged, by  the  Treaty  of  Utrecht,  to  be  subject  to  and  under 
Great  Britain,  and  in  virtue  of  the  same  Treaty  they  and  all  the 
Indians  are  to  enjoy  full  liberty  of  coming  and  going  for  the  pur- 
pose of  trade,  without  molestation  or  hindrance.  Now,  the  pass  at 
Niagara  is  that  by  which  the  Far  Indians  are  able  to  repair  to  the 
country  of  the  Five  Nations,  and  also  the  only  one  by  which  the 
Five  Nations  themselves  can  go  into  their  own  territory  to  hunt; 
and  in  spite  of  the  benevolent  and  innocent  views  Sieur  de  Longueuil 
pretends  to  entertain  in  building  such  a  fort,  the  Indians  cannot  be 
reputed  to  enjoy  free  trade  and  passage  so  long  as  they  are  bridled 
by  a  fort  built  on  their  own  territory,  against  their  will,  and  which 
absolutely  subjects  them  to  the  pleasure  of  the  French,  wherefore 
they  have  recourse  to  their  Sovereign  and  King,  the  King  of  Great 
Britain,  who  cannot  refuse  to  interest  himself  strongly,  as  well  on 
account  of  these  subjects  as  for  the  maintenance  of  Treaties. 

In  this  smooth,  featureless  form,  the  innocuous  phrases  of  a 
somewhat  perfunctory  diplomacy,  Louis  XV  received  the 
English  protest  against  the  building  of  Fort  Niagara  —  that 
protest  for  which  the  Iroquois'  sachems  had  gone  to  Albany 
"  howling,"  and  which  they  had  begged  should  be  "  writ  very 
pressing."  Kanackarighton,  the  daubed  and  greasy  Seneca, 
and  Horatio  Walpole,  the  courtier,  were  vastly  farther  apart 
than  even  the  Court  of  France  and  the  Niagara  wilderness  — 
of  which  it  is  plain  Walpole's  ideas  were  of  the  vaguest.  Many 
a  forest  ranger  would  have  laughed  at  his  claim  that  the  fort 
at  the  mouth  of  the  Niagara  kept  the  Senccas  from  their  hunt- 
ing grounds.  The  germ  of  this  specious  plea  lay  in  Burnet's 
benevolent  suggestion  to  the  Senccas,  but  it  helped  make  a  case 

7  DC  Fleury,  formerly  preceptor  to  the  Kin<r,  in  1 7:2(5  succeeded  the  Duke 
de  Bourbon  Conde  ;is  Prime  .Minister  of  France,  being  then  seventy-three 
years  old.  Pie  lived  until  January,  1743. 


A  TROUBLESOME  TREATY  261 

against  the  French,  and  there  were  few  either  at  Whitehall  or 
the  Court  of  Louis  competent  to  criticise  or  likely  to  question 
it.  Indeed,  had  the  red  Indians  themselves  made  their  "  howl  " 
before  the  French  King  and  his  Ministers,  the  result,  beyond 
the  infinite  diversion  which  they  would  have  made,  would 
scarcely  have  been  different.  Even  while  the  English  pro- 
test was  taking  its  official  course,  Louis  and  his  Ministers  were 
affirming  that  "  the  post  at  Niagara  is  of  the  utmost  impor- 
tance for  the  preservation  to  the  French  of  the  trade  to  the 
upper  country,"  and  were  considering  the  amounts  to  be  spent 
on  "  the  reconstruction  of  the  old  house  at  Niagara  [Joncaire's 
Magazin  Royal],  the  expense  whereof,  amounting  to  20,430 
li,  may  be  placed  on  the  estimate  of  the  expenses  payable  in 
1728  by  the  Domain  of  the  West."  8 

King  George  I  died  June  11,  1727;  and,  in  Canada,  in  1726, 
the  Marquis  de  Beauharnois  had  succeeded  the  Baron  de 
Longueuil;  but  the  Niagara  contention  continued.  Burnet  in 
the  spring  of  1726  having  built  and  fortified  a  stone  house  at 
Oswcgo,  the  new  Governor  of  Canada  at  once  assumed  the 
aggressive;  sent  a  formal  summons  to  Burnet  to  withdraw  his 
garrison  thence  within  a  fortnight,  and  "  to  cast  down  the 
block  house  and  all  pieces  of  work  you  raised  up  contrary  to 
righteousness,"  "  or  else  His  Lordship  the  Marquis  of  Beau- 
harnois will  take  measures  against  you  and  against  your  un- 
just usurpation  as  he  will  think  fit."  With  a  fine  solicitude 
for  a  rigid  adherence  to  the  Treaty  of  1713,  the  humor  of 
which  must  even  then  have  shown  itself  to  Burnet,  if  not  to 
Beauharnois,  the  French  Governor  accused  the  English  Gov- 
ernor of  '*  a  plain  contravention  to  the  Treaty  of  Utrecht, 
which  mentions  that  the  subjects  of  the  two  Crowns  shall  not 
intrench  upon  one  another's  land,  till  the  decision  of  the  limits 
by  the  judges  delegated  to  that  end"  —a  decision  which  was 
never  made,  for  the  commissioners  contemplated  by  the  15th 
Article  of  the  Treaty  were  never  appointed.  The  English  con- 
tention, as  afterwards  formulated  by  Walpole  in  his  memoir 

s  Abstract:  of  Despatches  relating  to  Oswego  and  Niagara,  X.  V.  Col. 
Docs.,  IX,  fl?!».  The  remark  quoted  above,  on  Niagara's  importance,  is  a 
note  bv  the  Kintr  himself. 


262  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

on  Fort  Oswego,  was  that  their  fortification  at  that  point  was 
no  violation  of  the  treaty,  "  since  the  Commissioners  to  be 
named  would  have  nothing  to  determine  relative  to  the  coun- 
tries of  the  Five  Nations,  who  are  already  declared  by  the 
Treaty  of  Utrecht  to  be  subjects  to  the  Crown  of  England." 
This  was  a  perfectly  just  deduction  from  the  obvious  intent 
of  the  treaty. 

Burnet  replied  to  the  arrogant  demand  of  Beauharnois  with 
his  usual  spirit  and  good  sense;  reminding  him  that  when  he 
(Burnet)  had  protested  against  the  operations  of  the  French 
at  Niagara,  he  had  been  content  with  writing  to  Court,  for  the 
English  Ambassador  to  make  dignified  and  decorous  presenta- 
tion at  the  Court  of  France :  "  I  did  not  send  any  summons 
to  Niagara,  I  did  not  make  any  warlike  preparations  to  in- 
terrupt the  work,  and  I  did  not  stir  up  the  Five  Nations  to 
make  use  of  force  to  demolish  it,  which  I  might  have  done 
easily  enough."  In  a  long  letter,  he  defended  his  right,  under 
the  treaty,  to  build  at  Oswego,  and  denied  again  the  right  of 
the  French  to  occupy  Niagara :  "  It  is  true,  sir,  that  I  have 
ordered  a  stone  house  to  be  built  there  [at  the  mouth  of  the 
Oswego],  with  some  contrivances  to  hinder  its  being  surprised, 
and  that  I  have  posted  some  souldiers  in  it,  but  that  which 
gave  me  the  first  thought  of  it,  was  the  fortified  and  much 
larger  house  which  the  French  have  built  at  Niagara,  upon  the 
lands  of  the  Five  Nations." 

In  due  time  report  of  this  correspondence  reached  the  Lord 
Commissioners  of  Trade.  Under  date  of  December  21,  1727, 
they  referred  it  all  once  more  to  Newcastle;  and  His  Grace 
in  turn  placed  it  in  the  hands  of  Horatio  Walpole.  Recall- 
ing the  memoir  on  the  subject  of  Fort  Niagara  which  Walpole 
had  made  the  year  before,  Newcastle  wrote  to  him : 

Both  that  Memoir  and  his  Eminence's  answer  to  you,  promising  to 
give  orders  to  examine  this  matter,  and  to  decide  according  to  jus- 
tice, led  us  to  expect  that  there  would  not  be  any  more  cause  for 
complaint,  but  as,  instead  of  seeing  it  remedied.  His  Majesty  lias 
been  advised  that  the  French  think  of  encroaching  still  further  on 
the  countries  under  his  obedience  in  said  quarter,  he  has  deemed  it 
expedient  that  you  again  apply  to  the  Court  of  France  to  induce  it 


A  TROUBLESOME  TREATY  263 

to  transmit  the  most  precise  orders  to  the  Governor  of  Canada  to 
abstain  from  attempting  anything  contrary  to  the  Treaties,  so  that 
all  these  differences  between  the  subjects  of  the  two  Crowns  may 
be  terminated  in  such  a  manner  that  the  Indians  may  visit  each  other 
without  molestation,  and  the  Five  Nations  receive  such  encourage- 
ment and  protection  from  His  Majesty  as  they  must  naturally 
expect  from  their  Sovereign.0 

The  result  of  these  instructions  was  Walpole's  memoir  on 
Oswego,  laid  before  the  Prime  Minister  of  France,  March  9, 
1728. 

The  15th  Article  of  the  Utrecht  Treaty  continued  a  fruit- 
ful source  of  disagreement  for  many  years  to  come.  In  17-18 
we  find  Governor  Clinton  of  New  York  carrying  on  an  epis- 
tolary dispute  with  La  Galissoniere,  who  had  succeeded  de 
Beauharnois,  over  this  same  debatable  Article.  The  French 
Governor  had  his  own  interpretation  of  it,  alleging  that  it 
"  does  not  name  the  Iroquois,  and  though  it  did  so,  it  would 
be  null  in  their  regard,  since  they  never  acquiesced  therein: 
we  have  always  regarded  them  as  Allies  in  common  of  the  Eng- 
lish and  French,  and  they  do  not  look  on  themselves  in  any 
other  light."  4i  You  are  misinformed,"  replied  Clinton,  "  for 
they  have  done  it  [i.e.  submitted  themselves  to  Great  Britain] 
in  a  solemn  manner,  and  their  subjection  has  been  likewise  ac- 
knowledged by  the  Crown  of  France  in  the  Treaty  of 
Utrecht."  10  This  disparity  of  view  between  the  two  coun- 
tries continued  as  long  as  France  held  Canada. 

For  a  decade  and  more  following  the  building  of  the  new 
fort,  Joncaire  the  elder  continued  active  in  matters  relating 
to  the  interests  of  the  Niagara.  lie  was  not  military  com- 
mandant, except  apparently  for  a  short  period;  nor  was  he 
in  charge  of  barter  with  the  Indians  at  that  post.  Coming 
and  going,  now  at  the  Seneca  villages,  now  at  Niagara,  or 
again  at  his  home  in  Montreal,  he  continued  in  the  military 
service,  but  always  charged  with  the  special  duty,  which  ae- 

f  Newcastle  to  Walpole.     The  letter  as  printed  in  X.  Y.  Col.  Does.,  TX, 
959,  is  dated  "Whitehall,  Kith   May    (().  S.),  1~-'<V  but  the  year  should  lie 
1728. 
10  Clinton  to  I. a   (inlissoniere,   Fort  George   in   New  York,  Oct.   10,   1748. 


264  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

corded  well  with  his  frequent  service  of  interpreter,  of  cul- 
tivating cordial  relations  with  the  Senecas,  and  of  reporting  on 
the  movements  of  the  English  —  duties  in  which  later  on  his 
eldest  son  is  to  succeed  him,  when  the  father  is  assigned  to  a 
new  field  of  activity. 

From  the  day  when  Chaussegros  de  Lery  broke  ground  for 
the  great  stone  building  at  the  angle  of  lake  and  river,  life  on 
the  Niagara  became  more  and  more  complex.  The  building 
operations  drew  thither  hordes  of  curious  and  jealous  Indians. 
The  trading-post  at  present  Lewiston  was  still  maintained,  and 
in  its  neighborhood,  at  the  foot  of  the  portage,  as  well  as  at  the 
head  of  the  long  carry,  were  settlements  of  the  Senecas,  many 
of  whom  found  profitable  employment  in  helping  traders  and 
travelers  up  and  down  the  steep  hills.  Although  the  Mississau- 
gas  had  not  yet  made  their  village  across  the  Niagara  from 
the  new  fort,  they  made  temporary  camp  there  and  haunted 
the  region  in  numbers  during  this  busy  summer.  However 
deserted  and  desolate  these  lake  and  river  shores  may  have 
been  when  winter  shut  down,  and  the  wolf's  long  howl  at  the 
edge  of  the  forest  answered  the  west  wind  in  its  sweep  over 
the  bleak  lake,  there  was  varied  life  and  activity  when  the  ice 
broke  up.  Then  came  endless  flotillas  of  bark  canoes,  loaded 
with  peltries.  The  fur  trade  was  old,  long  before  the  stone 
house  at  Niagara  was  built.  Into  the  general  history  and 
conditions  of  that  trade,  it  is  unnecessary  to  go  in  these  chap- 
ters. But  certain  features  of  that  trade,  and  of  the  attendant 
life,  heretofore  unrecorded  save  in  the  long-neglected  docu- 
ments, may  profitably  be  set  down  here  in  illustration  of  the 
conditions  of  the  time  on  the  Niagara  and  the  Lower  Lakes. 

The  great  purpose  of  the  French  in  building  the  new  fort 
on  the  Niagara  was  to  regain  the  fur  trade  which  was  fast 
slipping  from  them  into  the  hands  of  the  English.  The  strat- 
egic advantage  of  the  military  occupation  of  the  strait  was 
not  overlooked ;  but  it  was  far  less  by  way  of  preparation  for 
a  future  contest  at  arms  with  England,  than  to  secure  purely 
commercial  advantage,  that  the  work  was  undertaken.  And, 
from  the  French  point  of  view,  it  was  high  time  that  some- 
thing decisive  be  done.  More  and  more  the  Western  tribes, 


A  TROUBLESOME  TREATY  265 

who  ravaged  the  great  heaver-bearing  grounds  of  the  upper 
lake  region,  were  heing  drawn  to  Oswego  and  Albany  by  the 
superior  allurements  of  the  English.  Longueuil,  reporting  to 
his  father  the  baron  concerning  his  Onondaga  mission  of  1725, 
wrote  that  he  had  seen  more  than  a  hundred  canoes  on  Lake 
Ontario,  making  their  way  to  Oswego.  How  to  stop  this  trade 
was  a  matter  of  grave  consequence  to  Canada.  Returning 
from  Onondaga,  he  had  encountered  many  canoes,  propelled 
by  Nipissings  and  Sauteurs  from  the  Huron  regions,  making 
their  way  into  Lake  Ontario  by  the  Toronto  River,  and  all 
headed  for  the  mouth  of  the  Oswego.  The  new  barques,  he 
reflected,  should  stop  this.  The  Baron  de  Longueuil,  in  re- 
porting his  son's  discoveries,  added  the  further  information 
that  sixteen  Englishmen  had  gone  to  trade  at  the  Niagara  port- 
age, "  where  they  appear  to  have  wintered,  having  taken  there 
a  large  quantity  of  merchandise.  They  even  came  within  a 
day  and  a  half  of  Frontenac,  and  have  drawn  to  them  by 
their  brandy  nearly  all  the  savages,  which  has  done  so  great 
an  injury  to  the  trade  of  these  two  posts  that  they  will  not 
produce  this  year  a  half  of  their  usual  amount."  The  French 
at  this  time  heard  some  things  that  were  not  so.  There  are 
many  reports  that  the  English  intended  to  establish  them- 
selves at  Niagara ;  such  rumors  had  been  current  at  Montreal 
and  Quebec  ever  since  1720,  when  the  English  had  proposed 
to  put  horses  on  the  Niagara  portage ;  the  profits  of  that  en- 
terprise were  to  be  shared  with  a  Seneca  chief  who  was  to 
represent  the  English.  But  that  project  came  to  naught,  nor 
is  there  convincing  proof  that  the  English,  either  in  1720, 
1725,  or  at  any  other  time,  were  on  the  Niagara  in  trade,  dur- 
ing the  French  occupancy. 

More  credible,  however,  was  the  further  news,  gathered  by 
the  younger  Longueuil  in  this  momentous  summer  of  1725, 
that  English  and  Dutch  traders  at  Albany  had  bought  200 
bark  canoes  from  the  Ottawas  and  Mississaugas,  tribes  which 
at  this  period  carried  most  of  their  peltries  to  the  British. 
Longueuil  saw  more  than  sixty  of  these  canoes,  making  the 
Oswego  portage.  It  looked  to  him  as  though  the  English  were 
bent,  on  pushing  into  the  upper  country  and  utterly  destroy- 


266  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

ing  the  French  trade,  "  or  to  come  in  superior  number  to  Ni- 
agara to  make  an  establishment  there,  and  to  prevent  that 
which  we  plan  to  do."  Longueuil  took  his  hundred  soldiers 
to  Niagara  in  the  summer  of  1726,  not  more  to  employ  them 
as  laborers  on  the  stone  house,  than  to  patrol  the  lake  and  to 
stop  the  English  canoes  which  were  fully  expected  to  swarm 
down  upon  them.  The  English  did  not  come,  but  the  hundred 
soldiers  were  maintained  there,  apparently,  a  year  or  more. 
Their  return  to  Quebec  is  noted  under  date  of  September  25, 
1727. 

The  French  did  wrhat  they  could  to  check  the  growing  Eng- 
lish trade.  Voyageurs  passing  through  Lake  Ontario  were 
commanded  to  follow  the  north  shore,  from  Frontenac  to 
Niagara.  If  found  near  Oswego,  they  were  liable  to  seizure 
and  confiscation.  In  1729,  this  order  was  renewed,  emanat- 
ing from  the  King  himself,  and  the  commandant  at  Fort  Fron- 
tenac was  cautioned  to  enforce  it.  It  was  proposed  that  two 
canoes,  carrying  trustworthy  men,  should  cruise  on  the  lake 
and  intercept  any  traders  headed  for  Oswego.  In  the  spring 
of  1736,  Beauvais,  commandant  at  Fort  Frontenac,  learned 
that  two  traders,  Duplessis  and  Deniau,  were  making  for 
Oswego.  Alphonse  de  Tonty  was  sent  after  them.  He  over- 
took them  four  leagues  from  the  mouth  of  the  Oswego  River, 
confiscated  the  300  pounds  of  beaver  in  their  canoe,  and  car- 
ried them  back  to  Frontenac,  whence  they  were  sent  to  Mont- 
real and  imprisoned.  After  a  trial  and  fine  of  500  livres  each, 
which  they  were  too  poor  to  pay,  they  were  further  impris- 
oned for  three  months.  The  hope  was  expressed  in  the  dis- 
patches that  this  example  would  "  always  restrain  those  who 
might  be  inclined  to  drive  a  fraudulent  trade." 

At  Niagara  Captain  dc  Rigauvillc,  whose  command  of  that 
garrison  extended  over  several  troubled  years,  exerted  himself 
constantly  to  keep  traders  from  passing  along  the  south  shore 
of  the  lake.  His  faithful  services  at  Niagara  won  for  him  spe- 
cial recognition  in  the  dispatches.  In  1733  promotion  was 
asked  for  him ;  but  we  find  him,  some  years  later,  still  in  the 
same  rank  and  at  the  same  post. 

France  and  England   being  nominally   at  peace,  the  Cana- 


A  TROUBLESOME  TREATY  267 

dian  officials  were  wary  when  it  came  to  actual  conflict  with 
their  adversaries  in   trade ;  they  showed  a  wholesome  respect 
for  the  English  ability  and  willingness  to  come  to  blows;  but 
armed  strife  would  have  availed  them  nothing  in  the  circum- 
stances.     The  main  thing  was  to  draw  the  Indians.      To  this 
end,  the  Government  was  urged,  time  after  time,  in  the  annual 
and   special  reports  of  the  Governor  and  Intendant,  to  pro- 
vide ample  store  of  goods   for  Fort   Niagara.     In   1728,  the 
Minister  is  specially  begged  to  send  goods  in  great  abundance 
to  the  new  house  at   Niagara,  that  the  Indians  may  be  kept 
from  going  to  the  English.      Year  after  year  this   request  is 
repeated   in   the   dispatches.      Occasionally   the   Indians    found 
fault   with    the    quality    of   the   ccarlatincs  X1    supplied   by    the 
French,  or  with   the  price  in  barter;  but  the  one  thing  that 
killed  the  fur  trade  at  Fort  Niagara  was  the  restriction  put 
on  the  sale  of  brandy.     A  report  of  1735  says,  of  the  trade 
at   Niagara   and   Frontcnac,  that  it  becomes  yearly  less   and 
less,  in  proportion  to  the  expenses  incurred  for  it  by  the  Crown. 
"  These    two    posts,    which    some    years    before    had    produced 
52,000  li.  of  peltries,  for  the  past  four  years  yielded  only  25,- 
000  to  35,000  li."     All  this  loss  was  charged  to  the  cessation 
of  the  brandy  supply.     The  priests  were  reported  to  have  re- 
fused  to   confess   any   one  engaged   in   trading  brandy   to   the 
Indians,  and  the  storekeepers  at  Niagara  and  Frontcnac  were 
so  disturbed  by  the  decree  of  the  bishop,  forbidding  the  traffic, 
that  they  preferred  to  relinquish  their  posts  rather  than  fall 
under  the  ban  of  the  church  as  a  cas  reserve.*2     Beauharnois, 
mournfully  reviewing  the  situation,  admitted  that  it  was  diffi- 
cult to  let  the  savages  have  brandy  and  keep  them  from  get- 
ting drunk,  "  but  it  is  equally  certain  that  nothing  so  keeps 
them  from  trading  with  the  French  as  the  refusal  to  let  them 
have   liquor,    for   which    they   have    an    inexpressible   passion." 
Two  years  later  we  read  that  the  trade  at  Niagara  and  Fron- 

11  Ecarlatinvs,  i.  e.,  scarlatines,  ;is  some  of  the  old  records  have  it; 
probably  coarse  woolen  stuff,  f'f.  I'mrlatrn,  an  old  word  for  hose  or  leir- 
p-injr.  Xot  to  he  confuted  with  tcurlnte  (''scarlet"),  for  some  t-carla- 
tint'g  were  blue. 

i-  Cns  rrsfrvf',  a  prave  offense,  decision  in  which  is  reserved  for  the 
bishop  or  other  superior  officer  of  the  Church. 


268  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

tenac  is  no  better.  "  The  suppression  of  the  brandy  trade, 
added  to  the  bad  quality  of  ecarlatines  and  low  price  of 
beaver,  disgust  the  Indians  who  come  there  to  trade  —  they 
pass  on  to  Oswego."  And  still  later,  in  1740,  the  Sieur 
Bouchcrville,  then  recently  in  command  of  the  garrison  at 
Niagara,  gave  several  reasons  to  the  Intendant,  Hocquart,  to 
show  why  trade  was  so  bad  at  that  post.  First,  he  said,  for 
several  years  past  the  brandy  trade  had  been  forbidden  at 
Niagara ;  and  every  year  there  came  down  from  the  upper 
country  many  canoes  loaded  with  beaver  and  deer  skins,  but 
if  on  reaching  Niagara  the  Indians  could  not  get  brandy  they 
would  not  part  with  their  peltries,  but  continued  on  to  Oswego. 
Besides  that,  Indian  traders  in  the  pay  of  the  English  con- 
stantly intercepted  the  hunters  as  they  came  from  the  west  and 
north,  securing  their  peltries  and  effectively  blocking  the  op- 
portunities for  trade  with  the  French  at  Niagara. 

The  Intendant  consulted  with  the  Minister  at  Versailles  as 
to  what  might  be  done ;  but  that  dignitary  was  able  to  sug- 
gest nothing  more  effective  than  to  send  messages  to  the  chiefs 
of  the  Mohawks,  the  Oneidas,  and  the  Onondagas,  who  were 
the  intermediary  agents  of  the  English,  that  they  must  cease 
favoring  the  English  trade,  or  their  canoes  would  be  stopped 
and  pillaged.  M.  de  Bcaucourt  was  sent  to  a  council  at 
Onondaga,  charged  with  this  delicate  mission.  The  assembled 
chiefs  listened,  apparently  in  complacent  humor,  and  sent  him 
away  with  the  equivocal  assurance  that  they  would  spread  his 
words  among  the  villages. 

In  1740  the  Sieur  Michael  (sometimes  written  "  St. 
Michael ")  succeeded  Boucherville  as  commandant  at  Fort 
Niagara,  being  sent  there  because  of  his  supposed  ability  to 
build  up  trade ;  but  in  official  circles  at  Quebec,  as  no  doubt 
generally  in  the  gossip  of  the  day,  the  opinion  prevailed  that 
if  the  fur  trade  at  Fort  Niagara  was  to  flourish  the  amount 
of  the  annual  lease  should  be  reapportioned  with  regard  to  the 
traffic ;  and  be  accompanied  by  a  freer  dispensation  of  brandy. 
The  fur  trade  at  the  posts  was  carried  on  in  two  ways; 
either  by  lease  (bail),  the  Intendant  giving  lease-hold  to  the 
highest  and  best  bidder  for  the  trade  of  a  post,  and  the  rent 


A  TROUBLESOME  TREATY  269 

giving  the  exclusive  rights  to  the  lessee  throughout  the  extent 
of  his  post;  or  by  permits  (conge),  the  Governor  granting 
permissions  to  trade  in  certain  forts.  These  permits  were 
granted  in  great  numbers  to  persons  whom  the  Governor 
judged  proper.  Those  who  received  permits  paid  a  certain 
sum  (redevance)  yearly.  The  proceeds,  whether  by  lease  or 
by  conge,  were  received  by  the  Governor,  who  distributed  them 
in  pensions  or  perquisites  to  certain  officers,  in  gifts  and  alms 
to  widows  and  children  of  officers,  or  other  expenses  of  this 
sort.  If  at  the  end  of  the  year,  there  remained  any  funds  ac- 
cruing from  this  source,  they  were  turned  into  the  general  treas- 
ury.13 

The  posts  of  Frontenac,  Niagara  and  Toronto  at  first  were 
leased,  but  after  a  trial  of  that  system,  they  were  reserved  for 
the  King's  trade,  because  of  the  keen  rivalry  of  the  English 
in  these  quarters.  The  lessees  of  these  posts  having  put  on  their 
goods  prices  which  seemed  too  high  to  the  Indians,  the  Eng- 
lish sent  wampum  belts  among  the  tribes,  with  intelligence 
of  the  goods  and  liquor  which  they  had  at  Oswego,  and  which 
they  offered  at  lower  prices  than  the  French.  As  a  conse- 
quence, the  Indians  would  not  stop  to  trade  at  Niagara.  To 
checkmate  this  move,  it  was  necessary  to  cancel  the  lease  at 
Niagara,  and  at  the  other  trading-posts  on  Lake  Ontario; 
and  by  successive  reductions  in  the  price  of  goods,  to  regain 
the  Indian  trade.  Niagara  was  more  convenient  for  the  In- 
dians than  Oswego,  being  nearer  to  their  hunting  grounds. 
The  reduction  of  prices  at  Niagara,  however,  was  carried  so 
far  that  goods  were  sold  there  on  royal  account  at  less  than 
they  had  cost  the  King.  For  some  years,  there  seemed  no 
middle  course.  The  French  saw  that  they  must  submit  to  this 
loss  at  Niagara,  or  renounce  the  Indian  trade  and  abandon 
the  whole  region  to  the  English.  After  all,  this  diminution  in 
the  price  of  merchandise  was  less  a  real  loss  than  a  diminished 
profit,  because  the  furs  which  the  King  received  in  trade  were 
sold  at  Quebec,  bringing  as  much  as  and  sometimes  more  than 
the  price  paid  by  the  King  for  goods  traded  to  the  Indians.11 

is "  3/Vmoire   pour  .V.   Franroin   }>i/tot  ...,"'   Paris,  17G3,  p.   Jl. 
i-t  Rigot  to  the   Minister,  Sept.   'M,   1750. 


270  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

So  unsatisfactory  was  the  state  of  trade,  in  the  years  fol- 
lowing the  erection  of  the  stone  house,  that  it  was  proposed 
once  more  to  change  the  system  of  trade  there.  D'Aigre- 
mont  wrote  to  the  Minister,  October  15,  1728:  "I  believe  it 
will  be  advantageous  to  lease  the  posts  of  Niagara  and  Fron- 
tenac,  for  there  is  now  much  loss  in  the  trade  made  on  the 
King's  account,  and  it  will  always  be  so." 

In  1727  we  find  Beauharnois  complaining  of  Dupuy's  man- 
agement of  the  trading-posts.  "  He  has  farmed  out  for  400 
francs  the  post  at  Toronto  to  a  young  man  who  is  not  at  all 
fit.  M.  d'Aigremont,  to  whom  M.  Dupuy  sent  the  agreement 
for  signature,  refused  to  sign,  saying  that  he  would  talk  about 
it  Avith  the  Intendant,  showing  him  that  this  would  work  great 
wrong  to  the  trade  at  Frontenac  and  Niagara."  Notwith- 
standing all  that,  Dupuy  returned  the  agreement  next  day,  but 
he  refused  to  sign,  alleging  that  he  knew  of  another  man  who 
for  some  years  past  had  offered  a  thousand  crowns  15  for  the 
lease.  The  statement,  which  M.  de  Longueuil  confirmed,  illus- 
trates the  favoritism  and  "  graft  "  for  which  the  administration 
of  the  colony  was  soon  to  become  notorious. 

Although  the  building  of  the  stone  house  at  Niagara  did 
somewhat  stimulate  the  traffic  at  that  point,  it  by  no  means 
removed  all  difficulties.  The  King's  account  suffered  much 
at  the  hands  of  incompetent,  careless  or  dishonest  agents.  In 
the  year  1728  Saveur  Germain  Le  Clerc,  who  was  in  charge 
of  the  trading  at  Niagara  in  1727,  died  after  a  long  illness, 
during  which  his  accounts  were  so  neglected  that  M.  d'Aigre- 
mont, reporting  on  the  trade  of  the  posts  for  that  year,  was 
unable  to  find  out  what  goods  or  stores  had  been  traded  or 
used  at  Niagara ;  and  he  despaired  of  being  able  to  tell  any 
better  the  following  year,  "  M.  Dupuy  having  sent  to  Niagara 
to  replace  the  Sieur  Lc  Clerc,  a  man  who  is  scarcely  able  to 
read  and  sign  his  name,  notwithstanding  representations  which 
I  have  made  regarding  it.  This  man  is  Rouville  la  Saussaye, 
to  whom  was  leased  last  year  the  post  at  Toronto  for  one 
year  for  400  livres.  lie  still  has  that  lease,  which  is  not  com- 
patible with  his  employment  as  clerk  ("  commis  ")  and  store- 
is  "  Millie  eaous."  The  value  of  the  ecu  is  usually  given  at  2s.  Gd.  English. 


A  TROUBLESOME  TREATY  271 

keeper  ("  garde-mag (izin  ")  of  Niagara.  This  lease-hold 
which  is  at  the  foot  of  Lake  Ontario  and  which  has  been  ex- 
ploited in  the  King's  interest  in  past  years  as  a  dependency  of 
Fort  Niagara,  ought  not  to  be  leased  to  the  storekeeper  in 
charge  of  trade  at  Niagara,  because  of  the  abuses  which  may 
spring  from  it  —  this  man  may  send  off  to  the  Toronto  post 
the  Indians  who  come  to  Niagara,  under  pretext  that  he  has 
not  in  the  storehouse  there  the  things  they  ask  for.  Further- 
more he  might  make  exchanges  of  good  peltries  for  bad  ones, 
and  besides  could  intercept  all  the  Indians  in  Lake  Ontario, 
and  so  utterly  ruin  the  trade  at  Forts  Niagara  and  Frontenac." 
The  representations  of  M.  d'Aigremont  were  not  without 
effect,  for  Rouville  la  Saussayc  was  soon  succeeded  by  one  La 
Force,  who  held  the  post  for  some  years,  though  evidently  not 
greatly  to  the  King's  profit.  He  carried  on  the  barter  with 
the  Indians  at  Niagara,  apparently  in  a  loose  way,  with  little 
or  no  balancing  of  books  or  auditing  of  accounts,  from  1729 
till  1738,  when  the  Intendant,  Ilocquart,  suspecting  that  all 
was  not  right,  sent  the  Sieur  Cheurcmont  to  Niagara  to  in- 
vestigate. The  result  was  that  La  Force  was  found  to  be  a 
debtor  to  the  King's  account  in  the  amount  of  127,842  chats. 
The  chat  or  cat  of  the  French  fur-traders  was  probably  the 
raccoon,10  and  the  meaning  of  La  Force's  singular  indebted- 
ness is  best  given  in  the  words  of  M.  Hocquart :  "  According 
to  the  traders'  method  of  keeping  accounts,  the  cats  are  re- 
garded at  Niagara  as  [the  unit  of]  money  by  means  of  which 
they  estimate  the  price  of  goods  and  of  peltries.  For  instance, 
a  blanket  will  sell  for  eight  cats,  a  pound  of  beaver-skin  for 
two ;  similarly  with  other  articles  of  merchandise  and  furs." 
The  Sieur  Cheuremont  informed  Hocquart  that  he  had  reck- 
oned on  La  Force's  account  all  the  provisions,  stores  and  goods 

10  Chat  and  cJiat  saurarie  are  terms  which  are  very  often  encountered  in 
the  old  reports,  and  would  naturally  be  taken  to  mean  wild-cat  —  either  the 
Lynx  rufus  or  the  Canadian  lynx,  Lynx  Canadensls.  A  careful  study  of  the 
subject  by  J.  G.  Henderson,  in  a  paper  read  before  the  American  Associa- 
tion for  the  Advancement  of  Science,  1S80,  reaches  the  conclusion  that  the 
chat  of  the  early  traders  was  really  the  niton  of  France,  or  in  Enplish,  the 
raccoon.  The  fisher  (Ifn/tft'la  canitilf-nnix),  also  often  called  wild-cat,  is 
believed  to  be  the  pecan  or  pckan  of  the  French-Canadian  traders. 


272      AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

for  trade  which  had  been  shipped  to  him,  with  allowance  for 
all  that  he  had  used,  and  accepting  his  own  figures  as  to  goods 
sold.  The  Intendant  summoned  the  involved  commissary  to 
Quebec,  but  when  he  demanded  an  explanation  of  the  deficit, 
La  Force  could  only  say  that  Cheuremont  had  made  such  cal- 
culations as  he  chose ;  as  for  himself,  he  had  traded  according 
to  the  established  tariff.  This  tariff,  he  said,  did  not  take 
into  account  the  goods  which  were  ruined,  and  he  adduced  yet 
other  reasons  for  his  great  shortage.  La  Force  had  long  had 
the  reputation  of  a  man  of  probity ;  there  was  nothing  on 
which  to  base  a  charge  against  him  of  theft.  The  Intendant 
therefore  reached  the  conclusion  that  there  had  been  nothing 
worse  than  great  negligence  in  La  Force's  conduct  of  affairs, 
"  and  that  his  numerous  family  of  eight  or  nine  children  had 
considerably  increased  the  expenditures."  Cheuremont  toiled 
for  three  months  in  a  vain  effort  to  straighten  the  Niagara  ac- 
counts ;  meanwhile  La  Force  was  asking  to  be  paid  1000  livres 
which  he  claimed  due  him  each  year,  J3ut  which  were  withheld 
from  him. 

The  Intendant  finally  in  1739  replaced  La  Force  with  the 
Sieur  Le  Pailleur,  whom  he  describes  as  "  the  most  honest  man 
I  can  find  for  this  employ."  And  again  there  were  obstacles  to 
a  business-like  administration  of  the  post.  Le  Pailleur  had 
scarcely  taken  up  the  duties  at  Niagara  when  he  had  an  ad- 
venture with  a  mad  bull,  being  dragged  over  two  arpents  of 
road,  and  thus  put  hors  d'etat  for  work,  so  that  for  the  year 
1739  he  was  unable  to  keep  up  his  trading  accounts  or  even  to 
make  an  inventor}'  of  merchandise  in  the  storehouse. 

There  are  preserved  many  reports  regarding  skins  received 
at  the  Lake  Ontario  posts  in  these  years.  Niagara,  Fron- 
tenac  and  Toronto  are  often  summed  up  in  one  schedule. 
These  lists,  enumerating  the  number  of  each  sort  of  fur  re- 
ceived, with  the  price  allowed,  are  not  without  interest,  for 
they  illustrate  not  only  the  state  of  the  market,  but  the  rela- 
tive abundance  of  different  animals  taken  by  the  Indians. 
Some  of  the  old  French  names  of  species  are  difficult  to  iden- 
tify. In  the  following  schedule  of  furs  received  at  Niagara 
and  Frontenac,  season  of  1727,  "  chat  "  has  been  rendered  as 


A  TROUBLESOME  TREATY  273 

raccoon,  "  vison  "  as  mink,  "  pecan  "  as  fisher  (Mustela  cana- 
densis),  and  "  loup-ccrvicr  "  as  wolverene  (Gulo  luscus). 


VALUATION 

KIND. 

NUMRE 

R.     PER  SKIN. 

Castor  

.  .beaver  

.  .    2580 

7  li.     6s. 

Chevreuil    

.  .buck    

.  .      295 

Chevreuils    verts. 

.  .buck   (green)  

..    1875 

Bocufs  Illinois  .  . 

.  .bison    

4 

Cerfs     

.  .red  deer  

.  .      844 

Orignaux  

.  .moose     

7 

Chats  

.  .raccoon    

.  .      448 

28s. 

Loutres   

.  .otter    

..      167 

3  li.     5s. 

Loups-cerviers    .  . 

.  .wolverene    

8 

7  li. 

Loups-dc-bois  .  .  . 

..wolf     

4 

3s. 

Martres  

.  .marten     

.  .      247 

3   li.      9s. 

Grands  ours  

.  .bear  

.  .      378 

3   li.    12s. 

Oursons    

...cub     

52 

1 

* 

}-  60@  38s. 

Ours  movens    .  .  . 

.  .bear,  half-grown.  .  . 

8 

J 

Pecans     

.  .fisher  

84 

4  li.     9s. 

Pichoux     

.  .polecat    

.  .       104 

55s. 

Reynards  rouge  .  . 

.  .  red  fox   

6 

55s. 

Visons   

.  .mink    

5 

10s. 

Rat   musques.  .  .  . 

.  .muskrat     

8 

Is.  6d. 

The  above  is  one  of  many  lists  and  schedules  to  be  found  in 
the  reports  of  the  trading-posts.  Niagara  and  Frontenac  are 
invariably  coupled,  and  no  separate  mention  is  made  of  To- 
ronto, which  for  trade  purposes  was  regarded  as  a  part  of 
Niagara.  Toronto  was  at  first  treated  as  a  separate  lease- 
hold. Later,  it  was  made  virtually  a  branch  of  Niagara.  In 
1729  we  find  the  storekeeper  at  Niagara  directed  to  send  goods 
to  Toronto  as  needed,  the  accounts  to  be  included  with  those 
of  his  own  post. 

While  the  beaver  market  continued  good,  and  the  animals 
themselves  abundant,  many  other  fur-bearing  animals  whose 
skins  are  now  highly  pri/ed,  appear  to  have  been  neglected  by 
the  trappers.  The  beaver  was  the  great  staple  and  object  of 
trade,  although  at  times  the  market  so  fell  off  that  there  was 
little  if  any  profit  in  the  business  as  carried  on  by  the  French. 


274  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

Of  all  our  fur-bearing  animals  the  beaver  was  the  most  widely 
distributed.  Wherever  the  conditions  of  lake  or  pond,  marsh 
or  forest  supplied  him  with  the  means  for  his  natural  habitat, 
there  he  was  to  be  found.  But  the  records,  even  at  the  very 
beginning  of  the  French  occupancy  on  the  Niagara,  indicate 
that  at  that  time  the  beaver-hunting  grounds  were  some  dis- 
tance west  and  north  of  the  old  Iroquois  stronghold  of  Cen- 
tral and  Western  New  York.  In  Joncaire's  day  the  main  sup- 
plies for  the  trade  at  Niagara  appear  to  have  been  brought 
by  Indians  from  the  territory  north  of  Lake  Erie,  the  country 
around  Lake  Huron,  and  the  remoter  regions  of  the  Lake  Su- 
perior section.  In  1739  we  find  Beauharnois  making  strenu- 
ous efforts  to  increase  the  beaver  trade  by  establishing  posts 
among  the  Sioux.  In  that  year,  as  at  some  earlier  periods, 
war  between  tribes  had  interfered  with  the  hunting;  while 
other  tribes,  which  gleaned  some  of  the  best  beaver  grounds, 
the  Ottawas  and  Saulteux  of  Lake  Huron,  persistently  refused 
to  stay  their  loaded  canoes  at  Fort  Niagara,  drawn  to  the 
English  "  by  the  brandy  distributed  without  measure,  and  cheap 
goods." 

The  attention  paid  to  the  beaver  trade  in  the  official  cor- 
respondence of  Canada,  even  in  its  relation  to  the  Lower  Lake 
posts  during  the  years  we  are  considering,  would  fill  an  ample 
volume.  The  larger  aspects  of  that  trade  cannot  be  consid- 
ered, here,  the  present  aim  being  only  to  remind  the  reader 
that  the  quest  of  the  beaver,  more  than  anything  else,  brought 
Fort  Niagara  into  existence. 

There  were  amusing  difficulties,  in  those  days,  on  the  part 
of  the  storekeepr  at  Niagara,  and  his  brother  traders  else- 
where, in  trying  to  make  the  Indians  understand  the  basis  of 
exchange.  They  could  never  be  made  to  recognize  the  dis- 
tinction between  the  skins  of  the  full-grown  and  half-grown 
animals.  One  exasperated  report  compares  the  confusion 
growing  out  of  this  classification,  to  the  selling  of  an  old  robe 
de  chambre,  of  which  the  sleeves  and  bottom  of  the  gown  arc 
sold  at  one  price,  and  the  back  and  facings  at  another,  "  ac- 
cording as  the  parts  of  this  robe  were  near  the  body."  At 
a  meeting  of  agents  and  merchants  at  Chateau  St.  Louis  in 


A  TROUBLESOME  TREATY 

Quebec  in  1728,  it  was  agreed  that,  beginning  January  1,  1730, 
full-grown  and  half-grown  beavers  .should  be  taken  on  a  valua- 
tion of  3  li.  10s.  per  pound,  and  "  castor  fcullc  "  (undressed 
fur)  at  48s.  per  pound;  a  reduction  from  rates  than  prevail- 
ing. At  this  meeting  was  again  heard  the  inevitable  complaint 
that  any  effort  to  make  the  Indians  recogni/e  distinctions  in 
beaver  pelts  made  them  carry  their  furs  to  Oswego. 

The  famine  of  1733  contributed  to  the  diminution  in  the  re- 
ceipt for  beaver,  and  by  a  fire  in  April  of  that  year  at  Mont- 
real, more  than  2000  pounds  were  burned. 

The  combined  trade  at  Forts  Niagara,  Frontenac,  and  the 
head  of  the  lake  during  the  season  of  1724-25  showed  a  profit 
of  2382  livres,  3  sols,  9  deniers  —  about  $476  on  the  present 
basis  of  values.  A  report  of  1725  says:  "Two  hundred  and 
four  *  green  '  deer-skins  and  twenty-three  packets  made  up  of 
various  furs  are  left  at  Fort  Frontenac  or  Niagara,  which  is 
a  mere  trifle,  and  shows  how  the  English  have  taken  nearly 
all  the  trade  away  from  Niagara.  They  even  come  to  trade 
within  ten  leagues  of  Frontenac.  Moreover  the  price  of  furs 
has  so  fallen  that  bear-skins  have  been  sold  this  year  for  47s. 
apiece."  It  is  difficult  to  fix  the  purchasing  power  of  the  sol 
(.vow)  at  that  day,  but  at  its  nominal  value  of  a  half-penny 
(English),  it  puts  the  price  of  a  bear-skin  in  1725  at  less  than 
half  a  dollar. 

The  falling  off  in  trade  in  1725,  over  1724,  is  striking. 
Furs  from  the  three  posts  above  designated  realized,  in  1724, 
29,297  li.  10s.;  in  1725,  only  9,151  li.  15s.  6d.  Against  the 
total  receipts  of  38,449  li.  5s.  6d.  in  the  two  years,  there  were 
charged  36,0(57  li.  Is.  9d.  for  expenses,  leaving  the  balance 
of  profit  as  above  given.  One  item  of  expense  was  the  salary 
of  600  livres  paid  to  the  storekeeper  or  agent  at  Niagara. 
In  these  figures  and  many  others  to  like  purport  which  are 
contained  in  the  records,  are  to  be  found  the  real  reason  for 
building  the  stone  Fort  Niagara.  The  effect  of  that  enter- 
prise was  immediate.  In  1726,  long  before  the  new  work  was 
finished,  we  read:  "The  house  at  Niagara  had  a  good  ef- 
fect on  the  beaver  trade."'  Vet  for  that  year,  receipts  from 
Niagara,  Frontenac  and  ;"  head  of  the  lake  "  were  only  a  little 


276      AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

over  8,000  li.,  with  expenses  of  over  13,000  li.  "  This  trade," 
says  a  note  of  October  20,  1726,  "  is  so  poor  only  because  the 
English  were  all  the  spring  and  part  of  the  summer  in  the 
neighborhood  of  Niagara  and  gathered  in  all  the  best  skins. 
There  were  also  coureurs  de  bois  from  Montreal  who  spent  the 
winter  in  trade  at  Fort  Frontenac,  who  made  a  good  deal  of 
money  there.  Added  to  all  that,  the  price  of  skins  has  greatly 
fallen." 


CHAPTER  XV 

ANNALS  OF  THE  WILDERNESS 

THE  VENTITRES  OF  JOSEPH  LA  FRANCE  —  THE  NIAGARA  MUTINY  OF 
172!)  —  FATHER  CRESPEL  AT  NIAGARA  —  DEATH  OF  JONCAIRE 
THE  ELDER  —  THE  MYSTERIOUS  RIVER  COXDE. 

A  NOT  infrequent  source  of  disturbance  and  annoyance  at 
Fort  Niagara  was  the  passing1  of  unlicensed  voyageurs  and 
traders,  many  of  whom  brought  retinues  of  savages,  their  ca- 
noes fur-laden,  and  tauntingly  defied  the  commandant  at  the 
river's  mouth.  As  early  as  1727  we  found  record  of  men  of 
this  class  from  Louisiana,  coming  down  Lake  Erie  on  their 
way  to  Montreal,  and  of  Canadians  passing  up  the  Niagara 
on  their  way  to  the  Mississippi,  making  off  with  cargoes  of 
goods  for  which  they  had  not  paid.  Efforts  were  made  at 
Niagara  to  arrest  this  class  of  free-bootcrs.  One  Claude 
Chetiveau  de  Rousscl,  who  came  up  the  Mississippi  and  through 
the  Lakes  without  a  passport,  was  arrested,  put  on  board  ship 
at  Quebec,  and  sent  to  the  Rochefort  prison.  In  1732  per- 
emptory orders  were  given  to  the  commandant  at  Niagara,  that 
the  goods  of  all  traders  seeking  to  pass  up  or  down  the  river 
without  a  permit,  should  be  sei/ed. 

As  the  great  stone  house  neared  completion  and  life  at  the 
mouth  of  the  Niagara  passed  from  the  bustle  of  construction 
to  the  routine  of  a  small  garrison,  Longueuil  relinquished  com- 
mand once  more  to  Joncaire;  but  in  the  latter's  absence,  in 
the  season  of  1727,  a  man  named  Pommeroy  —  the  documents 
speak  of  him  merely  as  "  Monsieur  "•  —  was  in  command  at  the 
fort.  The  change  was  scarcely  made  when  an  incident  oc- 
curred which  illustrates  a  condition  no  doubt  arising  often 
in  those  days.  One  Desjardin,  a  resident  of  Detroit,  arrived 
at  Niagara,  "  bound  up  "  as  the  phrase  is  in  modern  lake  traf- 
fic, with  a  canoe  loaded  with  merchandise.  When  his  pass 
was  called  for  by  Le  Clerc,  in  charge  of  the  trade  at  Niagara, 
he  replied  that  a  companion  trader,  Roquetaillade,  who  was 

277 


278  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

a  little  ways  behind  with  three  more  canoes,  had  the  passes  for 
all  four.  The  next  day  Roquetaillade  arrived  with  a  permit 
for  only  three  canoes.  Desjardin,  whose  representations  were 
seen  to  be  fraudulent,  had  taken  his  goods  across  to  the  west 
side  of  the  Niagara.  Le  Clerc  deemed  that  the  circumstances 
warranted  him  in  seizing  the  cargo.  With  the  younger  Jon- 
caire  (Chabert  junior)  and  other  soldiers  he  crossed  the  river 
and  confiscated  the  goods  in  the  name  of  the  King.  The  con- 
tents of  the  canoe  would  have  stocked  a  country  store  in  more 
modern  times,  and  indicates  the  needs  and  whims  of  the  far- 
off  post  of  Detroit  at  this  early  day.  There  were  goods  for 
the  Indians  and  goods  for  the  French  settlers  and  their  wives: 
four  packages  of  biscuit,  six  sacks  of  flour,  a  sack  of  gun- 
flints,  numerous  guns,  a  bundle  of  leather,  a  large  covered  ket- 
tle and  seven  small  kettles,  322  pounds  of  lead  in  five  sacks, 
and  other  things,  all  of  which  were  taken  to  the  storehouse 
at  Niagara.  When  the  packages  were  opened  there  they  re- 
vealed men's  clothing,  four  pairs  of  children's  shoes,  a  pair  of 
women's  slippers,  boys'  and  men's  shoes,  fifteen  small  hatchets, 
a  barrel  of  prunes  and  another  of  salt,  a  white  blanket  and 
two  red  ones,  two  pieces  of  the  woolen  fabric  called  calmande, 
with  rolls  of  other  weaves  indicated  as  estamine  au  dauphine, 
and  indlenne  or  cotton  print.  Still  another  package  contained 
wax,  cotton  wicks  for  candles,  French  thread  ("fil  de  Rennes  "), 
cotton  cloth,  shoemaker's  thread,  and  blue  cotton  stockings 
for  women  —  perhaps  the  earliest  indication  we  have  of  the 
has  bleues  in  the  Lake  region.  The  confiscation  of  such  a  cargo 
of  frontier  necessities  was  a  serious  loss  to  the  unlucky  Des- 
jardin. His  large  bark  canoe  ("canoe  d'ecorse  de  huit 
places  ")  was  also  confiscated.  Such  was  the  penalty  for  fail- 
ure to  comply  with  the  prescribed  regulations  of  trade. 

Perhaps  worthy  of  note,  in  these  minor  annals  of  the  fron- 
tier, are  the  names  of  the  soldiers  which  with  those  of  Le  Clcrc 
and  Joncaire,  Jr.,  are  signed  to  the  report  of  the  seizure,  under 
date  August  21,  1727.  Here  we  meet,  as  it  were,  St.  Maurice 
de  la  Gauchetiere,  La  Jeunesse  dc  Budmond,  L'Esperance  de 
Port  Neuf,  Sans  Peur  de  Deganne,  St.  Antoine  de  Dechaillon, 
St.  Jean  de  Lignery,  and  Bon  Courage  de  Deganne.  Surely, 


ANNALS  OF  THE  WILDERNESS  279 

with  Youth,  Hope,  Fearlessness  and  Good  Courage  for  com- 
rades in  the  wilderness,  to  say  nothing  of  the  saints,  life  at 
Fort  Niagara  in  the  gray  old  days  could  not  have  been  wholly 
forlorn. 

On  a  day  in  the  spring  of  1735  two  canoes,  deeply  laden, 
came  skirting  the  northern  shore  of  Lake  Erie  to  the  dis- 
charge; took  the  good  channel  through  the  little  rapids,  and 
were  speeded  along  at  a  pace  of  some  six  to  eight  miles  an 
hour,  past  the  low  shores  over  which  Ruffalo  now  extends. 
In  the  wider  reaches  of  the  river  at  the  head  of  Grand  Island, 
where  the  current  slackens  to  some  two  miles,  the  red  voyageurs 
plied  again  the  paddles,  and  soon  made  the  ancient  landing 
at  the  margin  of  the  river  above  the  great  cataract.  Here, 
as  they  stepped  ashore,  the  party  was  seen  to  consist  of  eight 
Indians  and  their  employer,  a  half-breed  trader,  who  though 
well-nigh  as  dark-skinned  as  his  followers,  spoke  the  French 
of  Quebec  with  fluency.  There  was  a  quick  agreement  with 
the  resident  Senecas,  who  carried  his  packs  and  his  canoes 
over  the  old  portage  path,  down  to  the  lower  river,  receiving 
for  their  labors  one  hundred  beaver-skins.  Rcembarking,  the 
little  flotilla  hastened  out  of  the  Niagara  and  on  along  the  On- 
tario shore  to  Oswego  fort,  where  the  suspicious  trader  stayed 
on  the  strand  with  his  canoes,  sending  the  Indians  into  the  fort 
to  dispose  of  his  furs.  The  sale  accomplished,  he  made  his  way 
westward,  once  more  stole  his  way  past  Fort  Niagara,  and  after 
gaining  again  the  upper  river,  hastened  on,  weary  league  on 
league,  until  he  finally  came  again  to  his  abiding-place  at  Mis- 
silimackinac. 

This  was  Joseph  La  France.  His  father  was  a  French  Can- 
adian, his  mother  of  the  nation  of  Sauteurs,  living  at  the  falls 
of  St.  Mary,  between  Lakes  Superior  and  Huron.  Here  he  was 
born  about  1707.  His  mother  died  when  he  was  five  years 
old,  and  his  father  took  him  to  Quebec,  where  he  spent  six 
months  and  learned  French.  Quebec  had  then,  according  to 
the  subsequent  testimony  of  La  France,  "  4  or  5,000  men  in 
garrison,  it  being  about  the  time  of  the  Peace  of  Utrecht." 
Returning  to  his  people  at  St.  Marv's,  he  resided  there  until 
the  death  of  his  father  in  17~-},  when  the  son,  then  sixteen, 


280  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

embarked  upon  the  career  of  an  independent  trader.  He  took 
what  furs  and  skins  his  father  had  left  him,  went  down  to 
Montreal  by  the  Ottawa-river  route,  disposed  of  his  goods  and 
returned  to  acquire  a  new  stock  for  barter.  For  the  next  ten 
years  or  so  he  seems  to  have  taken  his  furs  regularly  to  the 
French.  In  173-i  he  adventured  in  new  fields,  going  down  the 
Wisconsin  to  the  Mississippi,  and  down  that  stream  to  the 
mouth  of  the  Missouri,  returning  by  the  same  route. 

In  1735,  stealing  by  night  past  the  French  settlement  at 
Detroit,  for  fear  of  being  stopped,  he  came  down  Lake  Eric, 
on  his  way  to  try  the  English  at  Oswego.  As  on  the  Detroit, 
so  on  the  Niagara,  he  appears  to  have  avoided  the  French, 
whom  he  subsequently  reported  to  have  "  a  fort  on  the  north 
side  of  the  Fall  of  Niagara,  between  the  Lakes  Erric  and 
Frontenac,  about  3  Leagues  within  the  Woods  from  the  Fall, 
in  which  they  keep  30  Soldiers,  and  have  about  as  many  more 
with  them  as  Servants  and  Assistants ;  these,"  he  added,  "  have 
a  small  trade  with  the  Indians  for  Meat,  Ammunition  and 
Arms."  1  Probably  his  dealings  with  the  English  became 
known  to  the  French ;  for  later,  when  he  went  again  to  Mont- 
real with  a  cargo  of  furs,  although  he  gave  the  Governor  a 
present  of  marten-skins  and  1000  crowns,  for  a  license  to 
trade  the  following  year,  the  Governor  would  neither  give  the 
license  nor  restore  the  money,  charging  La  France  with  hav- 
ing sold  brandy  to  the  Indians,  and  threatening  him  with  im- 
prisonment. La  France  escaped  from  Montreal,  and  toilfully 
made  his  way  up  the  Ottawa,  reaching  Lake  Nipissing,  after 
forty  days  of  paddling  and  portaging.  At  Mackinac  he  gath- 
ered another  stock  of  furs  and  set  out  once  more  to  try  his 
fortunes  with  the  French;  but  on  the  way  to  Montreal,  in  the 
Nipissing  [French]  River,  he  suddenly  met  the  Governor's 
brother-in-law  with  nine  canoes  and  thirty  soldiers.  They  took 
all  he  had  and  arrested  him  as  a  runaway  without  a  passport ; 
but  he  made  his  escape  through  the  woods  at  night,  and  after 

i  La  France  was  the  first  man  of  whom  we  have  record,  to  cross  from 
Lake  Winnipeg  to  Hudson's  Bay.  The  account  of  his  presence  on  the 
Niagara  is  found  in  Vol.  TI  of  the  "  Report  from  the  Committee  appointed 
to  enquire  into  the  State  and  Condition  of  the  Countries  adjoining  to 
Hudson's  Bay,  and  of  the  Trade  carried  on  there,"  etc.,  London,  1749. 


ANNALS  OF  THE  WILDERNESS  281 

weeks  of  hardship  returned  to  St.  Mary's,  resolved  to  be  done 
for  ever  with  the  French.  Having  lost  all,  lie  determined  to  go 
to  the  English  at  Hudson's  Hay.  His  subsequent  adventures 
belong  to  the  history  of  the  fur  trade  of  the  far  north  and 
west.  His  testimony,  given  in  an  enquiry  regarding  the  oper- 
ation of  the  Hudson's  Bay  Company,  affords  many  useful 
glimpses  of  the  conditions  of  the  time. 

La  France  was  the  type  of  a  class  of  men  who  at  this  pe- 
riod were  a  source  of  great  trouble  alike  to  the  French  and 
the  English.  The  French  especially,  at  Frontenac,  at  Niagara 
and  Detroit,  were  exasperated  by  their  disregard  of  the  conge, 
their  unlicensed  brandy-selling  to  the  Indians,  and  their  jour- 
neys to  the  upstart  British  post  at  Oswego.  As  La  France 
made  his  way  past  Fort  Niagara,  with  canoes  loaded  to  the 
gunwale  with  winter  furs,  the  French  of  that  little  garrison,  if 
not  indeed  Joncaire  himself,  may  have  noted  the  passing,  stand- 
ing impotent  to  prevent  it,  or  perchance  enraged  by  the  yells 
and  derisive  cries  of  the  defiant  freebooters,  no  longer  at  pains 
to  conceal  themselves  when  once  safely  past  the  fort. 

There  developed  in  England  at  this  time  a  considerable  out- 
cry against  the  monopoly  enjoyed  by  the  Hudson's  Bay  Com- 
pany; and  an  ingenious  advocacy  of  free  trade  in  North  Amer- 
ican fur-gathering.  The  experiences  of  Joseph  La  France 
provided  a  fruitful  text  for  those  who,  like  the  author  of  "  An 
Account  of  the  Countries  Adjoining  to  Hudson's  Bay,"  etc., 
undertook  to  show  their  countrymen  and  their  king  how  Brit- 
ish trade  might  be  extended  in  the  Lake  Erie  region,  and  the 
French  at  the  Lake  Erie  and  Niagara  posts  utterly  routed. 
Arthur  Dobbs,  who  combined  with  the  long-existant  British  hos- 
tility to  the  French,  a  bitterly  critical  attitude  towards  the 
Hudson's  Bay  Company,  set  forth  at  length  in  his  book  views 
which  no  doubt  met  the  approval  of  many  of  the  British  pub- 
lic of  his  day.  Curiously  enough,  one  of  his  strongest  argu- 
ments was  based  on  a  map-maker's  blunder.  On  the  large  map 
which  accompanies  his  work,  the  Great  Lakes  are  shown,  with 
"  the  great  fall  of  Niagara  "  properly  indicated  at  the  out- 
let of  "  Conti  or  Errie  Lake1."  The  whole  region  of  the  Lakes 
is  shown,  as  accurately  on  the  whole  as  on  many  another  map, 


282  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

up  to  that  time;  but  running  into  Lake  Erie,  a  few  miles 
south  of  the  present  site  of  Buffalo,  the  unknown  geographer 
has  borrowed,  from  a  dubious  source  of  40  years  before,  a 
stream  of  considerable  size,  and  named  it  "  Conde  River." 
The  Conde  River  originated  with  La  Hontan,  on  whose  map 
of  1703  it  first  appears.  Its  reappearance,  in  Dobbs's  book 
is  curious,  inasmuch  as  the  best  maps,  from  La  Hontan  to 
1744,  show  nothing  of  the  sort.  On  Coronelli's  "  Partie  orien- 
tale  du  Canada,"  etc.,  1689,  a  small  unnamed  stream  is  shown 
entering  Lake  Erie  at  this  point.  De  1'Isle's  map  of  1703 
shows  no  stream  at  that  point,  nor  do  most  others.  La  Hon- 
tan names  it  and  gives  its  source  in  a  small  lake  farther  east 
than  the  eastern  end  of  Lake  Ontario.  In  the  minutes  of  the 
Provincial  Council  of  Pennsylvania,  January  25,  1747,  is  an 
allusion  to  the  Indians  at  "  Canayahaga,  a  place  on  or  near 
the  river  Conde,  which  runs  into  the  Lake  Erie."  Its  real  pro- 
totype, in  the  annals  of  earlier  explorers,  may  have  been  the 
Cattaraugus  or  Eighteen-Mile  Creek ;  but  here  we  have  it,  shown 
unduly  large,  as  the  only  stream  entering  Lake  Erie,  its  head- 
waters coming  from  vague  mountains  to  the  southeast. 

Contemplating  this  stream,  and  the  exigencies  of  the  fur 
trade  in  the  region,  Mr.  Dobbs  saw  a  great  opportunity  for 
the  British,  "  by  forming  a  Settlement  on  the  River  Conde, 
which  is  navigable  into  the  Lake  Errie,  which  is  within  a  small 
Distance  of  our  Colonies  of  Pennsylvania  and  Maryland,  and 
being  above  the  great  Fall  of  Niagara,  and  in  the  Neighbor- 
hood of  the  Iroquese,  who  are  at  present  a  Barrier  against 
the  French,  and  a  sufficient  Protection  to  our  Fort  and  trad- 
ing House  at  Oswega,  in  their  Country  upon  the  Lake  Fron- 
tenac,  who  by  that  Trade  have  secured  the  Friendship  of  all  the 
Nations  around  the  Lakes  of  Huron  and  Errie.  We  should 
from  thence,  in  a  little  Time,  secure  the  Navigation  of  these 
great  and  fine  Lakes,  and  passing  to  the  southward,  at  the  same 
time,  from  Hudson's  Bay  to  the  Upper  Lake,  and  Lake  of 
Hurons,  we  should  cut  off  the  Communication  betwixt  their 
Colonies  of  Canada  and  Mississippi,  and  secure  the  Inland 
Trade  of  all  that  vast  Continent." 

Further  on  we  have  more  details  of  the  geography,  real  and 


ANNALS  OF  THE  WILDERNESS  283 

imagined,  of  our  region:  "The  Streight  above  Niagara  at 
the  Lake  is  about  a  League  wide.  From  this  to  the  River 
Conde  is  20  Leagues  South-west ;  this  River  runs  from  the 
S.  E.  and  is  navigable  for  60  Leagues  without  any  Cataracts 
or  Falls;  and  the  Natives  say,  that  from  it  to  a  River  which 
falls  into  the  Ocean,  is  a  Land  Carriage  of  only  one  League. 
This  must  be  cither  the  Susquehanna  or  Powtomack,  which 
fall  into  the  Bay  of  Chisapeak."  He  further  argues  the  wis- 
dom of  making  a  settlement  on  this  wonderful  river  Condc,  of 
building  proper  vessel.-  there  to  navigate  these  lakes,  so  that 
"  we  might  gain  the  whole  Navigation  and  Inland  Trade  of 
Furs,  etc.,  from  the  French,  the  Fall  of  Niagara  being  a  suffi- 
cient Barrier  betwixt  us  and  the  French  of  Canada,"  etc.  It 
was  alleged  that  the  British  Government  might  readily  induce 
colonists  from  Switzerland  and  Germany  "  to  strengthen  our 
settlements  upon  this  River  and  Lake  Eric."  Another  sug- 
gestion was  that  disbanded  British  troops  be  sent  on  half  pay 
to  Lake  Erie,  where  they  would  "  make  good  our  possessions, 
which  would  be  a  fine  retreat  to  our  Soldiers,  who  can't  so 
easily,  after  being  disbanded,  bring  themselves  again  to  hard 
Labour,  after  being  so  long  disused  to  it."  The  more  Mr. 
Dobbs  dwelt  upon  it  the  more  important  this  particular  pro- 
ject appeared.  The  French  were  to  be  cut  off  from  commu- 
nication with  the  Mississippi ;  Canada  was  to  be  "  made  insig- 
nificant for  the  French."  The  entire  fur  trade  of  North 
America  was  to  fall  into  the  hands  of  the  English.  And 
finally,  with  a  burst  of  sentiment  which  recalls  the  devout  as- 
pirations of  the  French  missionaries,  but  is  an  anomaly  in  the 
plans  of  British  traders,  he  exclaims:  "How  glorious  would 
it  be  for  us  at  the  same  time  to  civili/e  so  many  Nations,  and 
improve  so  large  and  spacious  a  country!  by  communicating 
our  Constitution  and  Liberties,  both  civil  and  religious,  to  such 
immense  Numbers,  whose  Happiness  and  Pleasure  would  in- 
crease, at  the  same  Time  that  an  Increase  of  Wealth  and  Power 
would  be  added  to  Britain." 

-  Scfl  "An  Account  of  tin-  Countries  adjoining1  to  Hudson's  Bay,"  etc., 
by  Arthur  Dobbs,  London,  1711.  Dobbs  became  Governor  of  North  Caro- 
lina, and  died  about  1 7(io. 


284  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

Life  at  Fort  Niagara  never  ceased  to  be  dependant  on  the 
King's  provision  ships.  If  the  annual  shipment  came  early 
in  the  season,  the  garrison  abated  its  chronic  discontent  in 
reasonable  assurance  that  it  could  endure  until  spring  on  the 
inevitable  flour  and  pork.  But  often  the  ships  reached  Que- 
bec so  late  that  the  annual  cargo  of  food  and  other  necessaries 
could  not  be  sent  through  to  Niagara  until  the  following  spring. 
In  1732  the  Ruby,  bringing  subsistence  for  the  forest  garri- 
sons, reached  Quebec  late  in  September.  The  utmost  dispatch 
was  made,  but  the  supplies  designed  for  Niagara  got  no  further 
that  fall  than  Frontenac.  The  winter  of  1732—33  was  a  most 
severe  one,  the  meager  harvests  of  the  colony  had  been  even 
smaller  than  usual,  and  there  were  privation  and  distress  in 
the  towns  as  well  as  at  the  lake  posts.  At  Niagara  they  felt 
the  additional  burden  of  the  smallpox,  which  this  winter  ran 
through  the  Iroquois  villages,  interfering  with  the  usual  hunt- 
ing and  trapping.  In  the  summer  of  1733,  stimulated  by  the 
urgent  tone  of  the  official  reports,  the  King's  ship  anchored 
off  Quebec  on  July  9th.  Even  with  this  early  arrival,  it  was 
September  before  the  barrels  of  flour  which  she  brought  were 
safe  in  the  storehouse  at  Niagara.  In  1734,  the  Ruby  ar- 
rived, August  16th;  but  in  1735  there  was  another  failure  to 
receive  anything;  the  Niagara  provisions  indeed  reached  Fron- 
tenac, and  were  loaded  on  a  bateau  ;  but  when  the  lumbering, 
laden  craft  essayed  the  autumnal  lake,  a  gale  drove  her  ashore 
and  the  trip  was  abandoned  —  with  what  result  at  the  wait- 
ing garrison,  may  be  imagined.  There,  short  rations  and  bad 
more  than  once  bore  fruit  in  mutiny  and  desertion.  Again 
the  Government  sought  to  atone  for  the  costly  delays  of  one 
season,  with  excess  of  zeal  in  the  next;  so  that  in  1736  the 
King's  ship  was  at  Quebec  on  August  7th,  and  in  the  next  sum- 
mer the  Jason  arrived  August  8th.  And  so  it  went,  with  vary- 
ing uncertainty,  the  efficiency  and  well  nigh  the  existence  of 
Niagara  depending  largely  on  the  modicum  of  attention  it 
might  receive  from  the  Minister  and  his  agents  in  France. 

Although  the  two  barques  which  had  been  constructed  at 
Frontenac  in  the  winter  of  1725  were  only  eight  years  old  in 
1733,  one  of  them  had  then  become  unfit  for  service,  so  that 


ANNALS  OF  THE  WILDERNESS  285 

there  remained  but  one  sailing  vessel  on  Lake  Ontario  that  sea- 
son. The  Intendant,  Ilocquurt,  sent  four  ship-carpenters  to 
Frontenac  to  repair  the  other,  hut  they  found  it  so  far  gone 
that  the  best  they  could  do  was  to  take  the  iron-work  from  it 
and  build  a  new  vessel.  This  they  did,  at  an  expense  of  some 
5,000  livres.  The  second  boat,  says  a  report  of  that  summer, 
was  greatly  needed  to  carry  goods  to  Niagara. 

At  Detroit,  after  the  first  few  bitter  years,  conditions  for 
self-mainenance  were  far  better  than  they  ever  were  at  Niagara. 
The  latter  post  never  had  the  thrifty  class  of  settlers  about 
it,  which  very  early  began  to  provide  flour  and  other  produce 
not  only  for  Detroit  but  for  Mackinac  and  other  upper-lake 
posts  as  well. 

So  productive  were  those  early  grain  fields  about  Detroit 
that  in  1730  a  memorialist  of  the  Crown  —  possibly  de  Noyan, 
though  this  particular  memorial  :{  is  not  signed  —  seeking  cer- 
tain privileges  in  the  western  trade,  unfolded  a  plan  for  sup- 
plying Niagara  with  flour.  To  further  this  project,  the  Gov- 
ernment was  asked  to  build  one  or  two  light-draught  vessels 
("  barques  plates  ")  to  navigate  between  the  Niagara,  Detroit 
and  the  Upper  Lakes.  The  advantage  of  such  vessels,  in  case 
of  Indian  troubles,  was  pointed  out:  soldiers  could  be  quickly 
transported.  Rut  the  opportunities  of  trade  loomed  large  in 
the  eye  of  this  speculator.  At  present,  he  wrote,  it  costs  the 
"voyagcurs  twenty  livres  freight  per  packet  of  furs,  from  De- 
troit to  Montreal.  With  the  desired  sailing  vessels  the  furs 
could  be  carried  for  ten  or  twelve  livres  per  packet.  Detroit 
would  gather  from  its  tributary  country  annually  1,000  to 
1,200  packets;  Mackinac  and  the  upper  posts  could  be  counted 
on  for  2,000  more.  The  petitioner  knew  well  the  conditions  of 
the  fur  trade.  The  Toi/ar/eurs  —  canoe  freighters  —  reached 
market  by  the  Ottawa  route.  Ry  the  Niagara  route  he  pro- 
posed to  carry  them  at  fifteen  livres  each.  Thus  on  1,000 
packets  from  Mackinac  he  counted  on  15,000  livres,  and  on 
1,000  from  Detroit,  10,000  more;  and  25,000  livres  freight 
receipts  in  one  season  should  have  appealed  to  a  Ministrv  ac- 

3 "  Mi'mnircx  runrvrnnnt  1'i'tnt-present  du  Canada  en  Van  1730,"  MS. 
copy  in  the  Archives  Ollicc,  Ottawa. 


286  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

customed  to  know  only  of  outlay  in  connection  with  the  lake 
posts. 

True,  some  expense  must  be  incurred,  to  start  the  business. 
This  plan  contemplated  the  construction  of  a  palisaded  ware- 
house above  the  Niagara  fall,  at  a  point  where  the  barques 
could  make  easy  and  safe  harbor.  The  portage  road  was  to 
be  extended  and  improved.  There  would  have  to  be  a  clerk 
at  the  warehouse  above  the  falls,  and  carts  for  carrying  the 
peltries  down  to  the  lower  river  —  the  landing  of  the  old  Mag- 
azin  Royal  —  where  two  flat-boats  would  be  needed  to  convey 
them  on  down  to  the  mouth  of  the  river  each  summer  in  July 
or  early  in  August.  The  desired  barques,  it  was  urged, 
could  make  at  least  three  voyages,  Niagara  to  Mackinac,  be- 
tween June  and  mid-August.  On  their  first  down  trip  they 
could  bring  away  the  furs  collected  in  the  neighborhood  of 
Mackinac ;  on  the  second  and  third  trips,  they  would  take  the 
packets  which  by  that  time  would  have  been  brought  in  from 
the  Lake  Superior  and  more  distant  posts.  The  author  of 
this  memoir  foresaw  the  prejudice  which  he  would  have  to  over- 
come among  the  traders ;  but  if  even  half  of  them  were  afraid 
to  risk  Niagara,  and  chose  to  forward  by  canoe  down  the  Ot- 
tawa route,  he  figured  that  even  then  the  profit  with  the  barques 
would  be  considerable.  Each  packet  paid  in  freight  twenty- 
five  livres,  Mackinac  to  Montreal,  by  the  Niagara,  where  the 
Ontario  barques  would  receive  them.  It  was  recommended  that 
the  Lake  Erie  craft  be  built  "  five  or  six  leagues  above  the 
Niagara  portage,"  and  the  promoter  thought  that  with  a  mas- 
ter and  four  sailors  for  each  vessel,  business  could  begin,  espe- 
cially if  soldiers  from  Fort  Niagara  and  other  posts  could  be 
called  on  for  service  when  required. 

This  was  probably  the  first  project  for  trade  by  sailing  ves- 
sels from  the  Niagara  to  the  Upper  Lakes,  since  the  disastrous 
voyage  of  La  Salle's  Griffon,  fifty  years  before.  The  Gov- 
ernment did  not  lend  its  aid,  and  the  plausible  and  elaborate  me- 
moir bore  no  immediate  fruit.4 

4  The  Intendant  Hoequart  wrote  to  the  Minister,  Oct.  23,  17.30,  in  he- 
half  of  one  Fleury  \vlio  had  "  particularly  at  heart  the  buildinir  of  a 
barque  on  Lake  Erie  for  the  fur  trade."  Iloequart  approved  the  under- 


ANNALS  OF  THE  WILDERNESS  287 

With  the  growth  of  trade  and  settlement  at  Detroit,  and, 
from  about   1730,  the  increasing  substitution  of  the  Niagara 
route  over  that  of  the  Ottawa  —  the  grande  rivwre  of  the  toil- 
ful old  days  —  traffic  adjusted  itself  to  a  recognized  tariff;  so 
that,  in  the  latter  days  of  the  period  we  are  studying,  if  not 
indeed  to  the  very  end  of  the  French  dominion  on  the  Lakes, 
transportation   by   the   Niagara   route   was   to  be   counted   on 
for  its  fixed  charges  as  much  as  any  inland  transportation  by 
boat  or  rail  is  to-day;  but  how  different  the  items!     The  De- 
troit merchant  of  say  1730,  returning  homeward  from  Mont- 
real with  goods,  brought  them  by  canoes  or  flat-boats  to  Fort 
Frontenac,    there   transferred   them   to   the   little   barque   that 
took   its   chances   Avith   all   the   winds   of  heaven,   on   the  long 
traverse   to   Fort   Niagara,   some   seventy  leagues,   as   the   old 
sailing-masters    made    it.      Reloaded    on    bateaux,    the    freight 
was  poled  and  pulled  up  the  Niagara,  to  the  foot  of  the  port- 
age.     There,   in   the  earlier  years,  each   packet  and   cask  was 
hoisted  to  the  shoulders  of  an  Indian  or  Canadian  engage,  for 
the  hard  climb  up  the  levels  and  through  the  forest,  some  seven 
miles  to  the  point  of  rcembarking  above  the  cataract.      Just 
when  horses  or  oxen  were  first  used  on  the  portage  road  is  un- 
certain.     We  know  that  the  English  had  proposed  to  use  them 
there,  in  1720,  and  that  the  French  did  use  them  for  a  number 
of  years.      All  this  transportation  was  paid  for  by  a  percentage 
on  the  weight.      The  cost  of  outfit,  too,  was  considerable.      If 
the  merchant   owned   his   own   canoe  —  a   canot  de  maitrc,  of 
six  or  eight  places  —  it  cost  him  at  least  500  francs.     For  the 
journey,   he  paid  his   six  engages,  who  not  only  paddled  the 
canoe   but   helped   make    the   portage,   250   francs   each.      The 
needed  food  for  the  journey  would  include  at  least  100  pounds 
of  biscuit  and  twenty-five  pounds  of  pork  or  bacon,  per  man. 
These  with  other  necessaries  brought  the  cost  of  equipment  and 
maintenance  to  2,260  francs.      Such  are  the  actual  figures  of 
one  "  voyage." 

taking  hut  the  Minister  did  not.  Forty  years  before  (IfiOO)  one  Sieur 
Charron  had  advocated  a  system  of  "  barges "  to  be  used  as  freighters 
from  Fort  Frontenae  "  and  at  the  fort  that  would  be  estahli>hed  for 
navafratintr  the  Lakes  above  the  Fall  of  Niagara,"  but  nothing  came  of  it. 


288  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

It  has  been  noted  that  the  winter's  supplies  occasionally 
failed  to  reach  the  Niagara  garrison.  Sometimes  the  supplies 
which  were  there  were  bad.  There  was  a  serious  state  of  af- 
fairs in  1738,  owing  to  the  wretched  quality  of  flour  furnished 
by  the  Government  for  the  subsistence  of  the  garrison.  The 
supply  was  eked  out  by  Canadian  flour,  of  which  there  was 
great  scarcity.  The  commandant,  to  head  off,  if  possible,  the 
desertions  to  which  the  soldiers  at  Niagara  were  always  prone, 
if  not  indeed  a  mutiny  of  the  whole  garrison,  sent  several 
officers  as  an  express  to  Montreal.  They  reported  that  the  sol- 
diers were  absolutely  unable  to  live  on  their  short  rations  of 
bad  bread  and  salt  meat,  and  begged  that  better  supplies  be 
sent.  Some  relief  was  gained  from  the  Canadian  harvest,  and 
the  spoiled  French  flour  was  shipped  back  from  the  lake  posts 
to  Montreal. 

In  the  summer  of  1729,  life  at  the  little  garrison  had  been 
disturbed  by  a  mutiny  among  the  soldiers,  due  probably  to 
bad  food  and  not  enough  of  it.  Whatever  the  cause,  it  made 
a  most  crucial  season  for  Rigauville,  commandant  at  the  time. 
The  prime  mover  in  the  uprising  was  one  Charles  Panis,  and 
with  him  in  rebellion  were  Laignille,  La  Joye,  one  Bernard  — 
"  called  Dupont," —  and  so  many  others  that  the  maintenance 
of  any  discipline  at  all  was  in  jeopardy.  The  especial  enmity 
of  the  mutineers  was  directed  against  the  commandant  and 
Ensign  Ferriere.  A  Government  secretary,  Bernard,  who  was 
at  Niagara  at  the  time  auditing  the  accounts  of  the  store- 
keeper, was  sent  off  post-haste  to  Montreal  with  a  report  of 
the  affair.  Beauharnois  promptly  sent  back  Captain  Gauche- 
tiere  and  Ensign  Celoron,  with  a  detachment  of  twenty  trusty 
men  to  replace  the  rebels.  The  latter  were  taken  to  Montreal, 
where  they  were  held  under  arrest,  in  irons.  An  affair  fol- 
lowed which  made  more  of  a  stir  than  the  original  mutiny. 
The  uprising  at  Niagara  had  occurred  on  July  26th.  It  was 
not  until  after  a  long  and  dangerous  delay  that  the  offenders 
were  brought  to  trial  before  a  council  of  war,  which  in  due 
time,  pronounced  sentence.  Laignille  and  La  Joye  were  con- 
demned to  be  hanged  and  broken  ["  pendus  et  rompus  "  ]  ; 
while  Dupont,  a  deserter,  was  merely  to  be  hanged.  Early  in 


ANNALS  OF  THE  WILDERNESS  289 

the  morning  of  October  18th,  before  the  executions  were  to  take 
place,  one  of  the  condemned  men  cried  out  for  help  for  his 
comrade,  who  feigned  to  be  sick.  The  jailor's  daughter  ran 
to  them,  but  scarcely  had  she  opened  the  door  of  their  dun- 
geon, than  the  three  criminals,  who  had  broken  off  their  irons, 
threw  themselves  upon  her,  overcame  the  sentry,  climbed  over 
the  palisades  and  ran  away.  The  gallows  and  platform,  which 
had  been  made  ready  for  the  executions,  were  surreptitiously 
taken  down  and  carried  off,  by  whom  the  authorities  could  not 
learn.  As  it  was  deemed  necessary  to  make  an  example  of 
some  one,  the  jailor  was  removed  from  his  post,  though  it  was 
not  shown  that  he  was  in  any  wise  responsible  for  the  escape. 
There  is  no  record  found  that  any  of  the  seditious  soldiers  were 
punished. 

The  official  reports  became  very  fretful  over  the  matter.  It 
was  complained  that  the  priests  and  women  had  meddled  with 
the  affair,  creating  sympathy  for  the  prisoners.  The  whole 
system  of  procedure  was  criticised;  there  had  been  shown  a 
complete  ignorance  of  the  laws  and  ordinances.  "  There  is 
scarcely  an  officer  in  the  country,  and  especially  at  Montreal, 
who  knows  how  to  conduct  a  procedure  of  this  sort."  "  If 
the  officers  who  composed  the  council  of  war  had  been  in- 
structed in  the  ordinance  of  July  26,  1668,  the  execution  of 
the  criminals  need  not  have  been  delayed  more  than  twenty-four 
hours,"  etc.  The  Governor  and  Intendant  took  the  occasion 
to  renew  with  great  urgency  their  frequent  request  that  more 
troops  be  sent  to  the  colony. 

As  for  "  Charles  Panis,"  the  instigator  of  the  Niagara  mu- 
tiny, he  was  put  aboard  the  French  vessel  St.  Antoine,  and 
sent  to  Martinique  in  banishment.  The  Governor  there  was 
requested  to  hold  him  forever  as  a  slave,  forbidding  him  ever 
to  return  to  Canada  or  to  go  even  to  the  P^nglish  colonies. 
This  culprit,  whose  name  is  written  in  the  documents  as 
Charles  Panis,  may  not  unlikely  have  been  Charles,  a  Panis  or 
Pani,  the  name  by  which  the  French  designated  the  Nau- 
dowasses  or  slave  Indians.  These  people  occupy  a  strange 
position  in  the  history  of  North  American  tribes.  In  Jon- 
caire's  time,  they  are  frequently  found  as  slaves  and  menials 


290  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

not  only  among  the  Senecas  and  other  warlike  tribes,  but  among 
the  French.  Nor  is  it  wholly  improbable  that  such  an  In- 
dian should  have  been  the  instigator  of  a  mutiny  among  French 
soldiers,  for  more  than  once  in  the  records  may  be  found  men- 
tion of  Panis  who  served  with  the  French  troops.  Several  of 
them,  in  Pean's  following,  were  killed  at  Fort  Necessity  in 
July,  1754.  In  1747  a  runaway  Panis  was  shipped  from  Mont- 
real to  Martinique,  there  to  be  sold  for  the  benefit  of  his  owner. 
Facts  like  these,  and  the  further  fact  that  "  Panis  "  is  an  un- 
likely French  name,  pretty  clearly  point  out  the  character  of 
the  instigator  of  the  mutiny  at  Fort  Niagara.5 

As  for  Laignille  and  his  lawless  associates,  they  no  doubt 
soon  found  their  way  into  the  ranks  of  coureurs  de  bois  and 
unlicensed  traffickers  with  the  Indians,  not  improbably  allying 
themselves  with  some  remote  tribe,  where  they  forever  merged 
their  identity  with  that  of  their  savage  associates.  The  wil- 
derness lodges  were  harbingers  of  many  a  white  outlaw  in  those 
days. 

To  the  period  we  are  considering,  belongs  —  if  it  belongs 
to  history  at  all  —  the  Niagara  visit  of  one  Claude  Le  Beau, 
"  avocat  en  parlement,"  romancer  and  adventurer  at  large. 
According  to  his  own  testimony,  this  young  man,  a  native  of 
Rochelle,  went  to  Paris  in  1729,  and  in  the  same  year  was 
drawn  from  his  legal  studies  into  a  voyage  to  Canada.  Ship- 
wrecked in  the  St.  Lawrence,  he  arrived  at  Quebec,  in  sad 
plight,  June  18,  1729.  He  found  employment  as  a  clerk  in  the 
fur  business  ("  bureau  du  castor"),  where  he  continued,  mak- 
ing his  home  with  the  Recollect  Fathers,  for  more  than  a  year. 
He  ran  away  from  sober  pursuits,  in  March,  1731,  and  took  to 
the  woods  with  two  Indians.  His  many  adventures  are  too 
numerous,  and  of  too  little  consequence,  to  make  even  a  sum- 
mary of  them  worth  while  here.  His  narrative  puts  the  time 
of  his  arrival  at  Niagara  in  June,  1731,  and  under  sufficiently 
fantastic  conditions.  He  was  accompanied,  with  other  In- 
dians, by  his  mistress,  an  Abenaki  maiden,  with  whom  he  had 

s  Details  of  the  Fort  Xiapara  mutiny  are  jriven  in  a  report  of  Beau- 
harnois  and  Hocquart  to  the  Minister,  Oft.  23,  1730,  and  in  other  documents 
of  the  time. 


ANNALS  OF  THE  WILDERNESS  291 

exchanged  clothes.  lie  had  resorted  to  this  and  other  dis- 
guise to  avoid  arrest  by  the  French  as  a  deserter.  A  long 
story  is  made  of  his  encounter  with  soldiers  from  Fort  Niagara, 
and  of  his  final  sanctuary  in  Seneca  villages.  He  says  that 
letters  were  received  from  Montreal,  by  the  commandant  at 
Fort  Niagara,  ordering  his  arrest,  if  he  appeared  in  the  neigh- 
borhood. 

Needless  to  say,  no  mention  of  Le  Beau  is  found  in  the  of- 
ficial correspondence.  His  book  has  for  the  most  part  the  air 
of  truth;  he  is  precise  with  his  dates,  and  in  his  account  of 
Indian  customs  shows  much  accurate  knowledge.  Among  the 
things  that  tell  against  him  are  his  allusions  to  a  Jesuit  priest, 
Father  Cirenc,  among  the  Mohawks;  but  this  name  is  not 
found  in  all  the  Relations  of  the  order ;  although  there 
was  a  Father  Jacques  Sireme.  Le  Beau's  account  of  Ni- 
agara Falls  is  dubious  ;  he  says  they  are  600  feet  high.  This 
is  La  Hontan's  figure  of  many  years  before.  Le  Beau  has 
much  to  say  of  La  Hontan  and  his  misrepresentations,  but  the 
indications  are  that  he  accepted  one  of  that  gay  officer's  wildest 
exaggerations,  and  that  he  may  never  have  seen  Niagara  at 
all.  He  probably  came  to  Canada  and  had  some  experience 
among  the  Indians  ;  and  when  he  wrote  his  book,  chose  to  so 
enlarge  upon  what  he  had  really  seen  and  experienced,  still 
holding  to  a  thread  of  fact,  that  the  result  has  little  interest  as 
fiction,  and  no  value  whatever  as  history.6 

From  the  time  of  the  establishment  of  Fort  Niagara,  Chabert 
Joncaire  the  elder  was  more  and  more  an  object  of  jealousy 
and  hatred  for  the  English.  It  was  not  without  reason  that 
they  ascribed  to  him  the  success  of  the  French  on  the  Niagara. 
Now  rumors  began  to  fly.  It  was  reported  to  the  French 

°  »SV<<  the  "  .Iz'anfurtx  <ln  Sr.  C.  ],c  Jlrau,  az'ncat  fn  pnrlcment,  on  T'oy- 
aijf  curli'U.r  ct  nonrcnn,  pnrnii  let  Sfturiu/t-.t  (It-  V. \mf-riquc  Scptentrionali'" 
etc.,  Amsterdam,  17!N.  So  far  as  T  am  aware,  this  curious  honk  lias  never 
been  published  in  Knjrlish.  While  the  eause  of  history  would  scarcely  be 
promoted  by  such  a  publication,  yet  it  is  singular  in  these  days  of  reprint- 
ing anythinir  that  is  old  and  curious,  that  no  publisher  has  Driven  us  a  new 
edition — "with  notes" — of  f,e  F5eau.  There1  is  a  German  edition.  Le 
Beau's  American  adventures  are  dNcu-^cd  in  J.  F.dmond  Hoy's  paper, 
"  /v.v  Fits  ct  Fditiilli;  tnvoi/i'x  an  C(ina<l<t,"  Memoirs,  Roy.  Soc.  Canada,  Vol. 
VII. 


292  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

King,  on  the  word  of  Sieur  de  La  Corne,  that  an  Indian  had 
promised  the  English  that  the  house  at  Niagara  should  be 
razed,  and  that  the  Iroquois  had  been  bribed  by  the  Albany 
people  to  get  rid  of  Joncaire.  Louis  approved  the  order 
to  send  word  to  Joncaire  himself  of  all  this,  and  instructed 
him  to  learn  the  truth  of  these  reports,  and  to  prevent  the 
accomplishment  of  English  designs.  As  the  English  at  this  time 
were  making  lavish  presents  to  the  Indians,  Joncaire's  task 
was  no  light  one.  They  even  sent  wampum  peace  belts  to  re: 
mote  tribes  —  to  the  Indians  of  Sault  St.  Louis,  the  Lake 
of  the  Two  Mountains,  to  the  Algonkins  and  Nepissings,  in- 
viting them  all  to  remain  quiet  while  the  Iroquois  were  tear- 
ing down  Fort  Niagara.  When  the  English  overtures  took 
any  other  form  than  substantial  gifts,  the  Indians  tired  of 
them.  As  W7e  have  seen,  to  the  English  demand  that  the  Iro- 
quois should  allow  them  to  build  a  fort  on  the  west  side  of  the 
Niagara,  opposite  the  French  establishment,  the  savages  re- 
plied that  they  did  not  wish  to  be  troubled  further  about  it ; 
that  they  did  not  regret  having  given  their  consent  to  the 
French ;  and  if  the  English  wished  to  build  on  the  Niagara, 
they  must  settle  it  with  "  Onontio  " ;  as  for  them,  they  would 
not  interfere ; 7  which,  after  all,  was  not  bad  diplomacy  on 
the  part  of  the  savage. 

For  the  next  few  years  Joncaire's  chief  employment  was  to 
inform  his  superior  officers  of  English  intrigues  among  the 
Iroquois,  and  to  thwart  them  by  his  experience  and  influence. 
He  was  among  the  Senecas  on  such  a  mission  in  1730,  the  Sieur 
de  Rigauville  being  then  in  command  at  Fort  Niagara. 

It  was  at  this  time  (1730)  that  he  appears  to  have  essayed 
to  repeat,  at  Irondcquoit  Bay,  his  achievements  on  the  Ni- 
agara, but  without  a  like  success.  I  find  no  record  of  the 
enterprise  in  the  French  documents ;  the  English  report  of  it 
puts  Joncaire  in  a  ridiculous  role.  It  was  Lawrence  Claessen 
who  carried  the  news  to  Albany  in  the  autumn  of  this  year, 
that  Joncaire  with  a  following  of  French  soldiers,  had  gone 
among  the  Senecas  and  told  them  "  that  he  having  disobliged 
his  governor  was  Duck'cl  whip'd  and  banished  as  a  malefac- 

7  Marquis  de  Beauharnois  to  the  Minister,  Sept.  25,  1726. 


ANNALS  OF  THE  WILDERNESS 

tor,  and  said,  that  as  lie  had  been  a  prisoner  among  that  Na- 
tion, and  that  then  his  life  was  in  their  hands,  and  as  they  then 
saved  his  life,  he  therefore  deemed  himself  to  be  a  coherent 
brother  to  that  Nation,  and  therefore  prayed  that  they  might 
grant  him  toleration  to  build  a  trading  house  at  a  place  called 
Tiederontequatt,  at  the  side  of  the  Kadarachqua  lake  about 
ten  Leagues  from  the  Sinnekes  Country,  and  is  about  middle 
way  Oswcgo  and  Vagero  [Niagara]  .  .  .  and  that  he  the  said 
Jean  Ceure  entreated  and  beg'd  the  Sinnekes  that  they  would 
grant  him  liberty  to  build  the  aforesaid  Trading  house  at  that 
place,  in  order  that  he  might  get  his  livclyhood  by  trading  there 
and  that  lie  might  keep  some  Soldiers  to  work  for  him  there 
whom  he  promised  should  not  molest  or  use  any  hostility  to  his 
Brethren  the  Sinnekes,"  and  much  more  to  like  purport.  lie 
was  further  said  to  be  an  emissary  of  the  Foxes. 

Some  correspondence  ensued,  on  this  extraordinary  report 
by  Claesscn.  The  commissioners  for  Indian  affairs  at  Albany 
made  it  the  subject  of  a  long  letter  to  representatives  of  Eng- 
lish interests  among  the  Senecas,  but  even  they  saw  the  ab- 
surdity of  Joncaire  having  a  following  of  French  soldiers  if 
lie  had  been  banished  from  Canada.  The  part  assigned  to  him 
in  this  affair  by  the  Dutch  interpreter  is  at  utter  variance 
with  what  we  know  of  Joncaire's  character  and  employment  at 
this  time. 

The  more  one  studies  the  old  records,  with  the  purpose  of 
gaining  therefrom  a  true  conception  of  Joncaire's  character 
— of  discovering  just  what  manner  of  man  he  was,  and  what 
is  his  true  position  among  the  men  who  made  the  history  of  his 
times  —  the  less  does  he  appear  as  a  half-wild  sojourncr  among 
the  savages,  tin-  more  is  In-  seen  to  be  a  man  of  character,  of 
marked  ability  to  control  others,  and  of  some  social  standing 
and  culture,  as  those  qualities  went  at  the  time.  His  own 
letters,  written  in  a  day  when  many,  even  men  of  affairs,  knew 
not  how  to  hold  a  pen,  testify  to  the  excellent  quality  of  his 
mind.  lie  had  the  reputation  among  his  brother  officers  of 
being  a  braggart  :  but  even  those  who  charged  him  with  it.  ad- 
mitted that  his  achievements,  especially  in  handling  the  Senecas, 
gave  good  warrant  for  boasting. 


294  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

For  forty  years  his  relations  with  the  missionaries,  espe- 
cially of  the  Order  of  Jesuits,  were  intimate.  His  association 
in  his  early  years  with  Fathers  Milet,  Bruyas  and  Vaillant 
has  been  noted  in  the  narrative.  For  Charlevoix  he  became 
host  on  the  banks  of  the  Niagara,  and  no  doubt  gave  the  priest 
manv  useful  suggestions  for  his  famous  journey  up  the  Lakes 
in  1721.  It  was  Joncaire  who  told  Charlevoix  of  the  famous 
oil  spring  at  Ganos,8  now  near  Cuba,  N.  Y.  "  The  place  where 
we  meet  with  it,"  wrote  Charlevoix,  "  is  called  Ganos ;  where  an 
officer  worthy  of  credit  [Joncaire]  assured  me  that  he  had  seen 
a  fountain,  the  water  of  which  is  like  oil  and  has  the  taste  of 
iron.  He  said  also  that  a  little  further  there  is  another  foun- 
tain exactly  like  it,  and  that  the  savages  make  use  of  its  waters 
to  appease  all  manner  of  pains."  Joncaire  may  have  been  the 
first  white  man  to  visit  these  or  other  oil  springs  in  the  region, 
and  so,  possibly,  to  become  the  discoverer  of  petroleum.  But 
others  had  heard  of  them,  whether  they  visited  them  or  not, 
long  before  Joncaire's  day.  The  "  Relation  "  of  the  Jesuits 
for  1656—57,  edited  by  Le  Jeune,  says,  in  its  description  of  the 
Iroquois  country :  "  As  one  approaches  nearer  to  the  country 
of  the  Cats  [z.  e.,  the  Eries],  one  finds  heavy  and  thick  water, 
which  ignites  like  brandy,  and  boils  up  in  bubbles  of  flame 
when  fire  is  applied  to  it.  It  is  moreover  so  oily  that  all  our 
savages  use  it  to  anoint  and  grease  their  heads  and  their 
bodies."  Father  Chaumonot  was  among  the  Senecas  in  1656, 
as  were,  at  various  times,  Fathers  Fremin,  Menart  and  Vaillant. 
These  or  still  other  missionaries  may  have  been  led  to  the 
oil  springs  more  than  half  a  ccntur}T  before  Joncaire;  to 
whom  none  the  less  belongs  some  credit  for  making  them 
known. 

One  of  the  few  students  of  our  history  who  have  discovered 
in  Joncaire  anything  more  than  a  rough  soldier  and  interpre- 
ter, erroneously  calls  him  a  "  chevalier,"  and  pictures  him  as 
especially  zealous  in  behalf  of  the  Roman  Catholic  religion. 
"  To  extend  the  dominion  of  France,"  says  William  Dunlap, 

8  Ganos  is  derived  from  Ccnif  or  Oaifnnn,  which  in  the  Iroquois  signifies 
oil  or  liquid  grease  (Hruyas).  This  oil  spring  is  in  the  town  of  Cuba, 
Allegany  Co.,  N.  Y.  The  oilier  referred  to  is  in  Yenango  Co.,  Pa. 


ANNALS  OF  THE  WILDERNESS  2!)5 

"  and  of  the  Roman  religion,  this  accomplished  French  gentle- 
man bade  adieu  to  civilized  life,  and  by  long  residence  among 
the  Senecas,  adopting  their  mode  of  life,  and  gaining  their 
confidence,  lie  procured  himself  to  be  adopted  into  the  tribe, 
and  to  be  considered  as  a  leader  in  their  councils.  His  in- 
fluence with  the  Onondagas  was  about  as  great  as  with  his  own 
tribe.  By  introducing  and  supporting  the  priests,  and  other 
missionaries,  employed  by  the  Jesuits  and  instructed  by  the 
Governor;  by  sending  intelligence  to  Montreal  or  Quebec,  by 
these  spies ;  by  appearing  at  all  treaty  councils,  and  exerting 
his  natural  and  acquired  eloquence  —  it  is  necessary  to  say, 
he  was  master  of  their  language  —  he  incessantly  thwarted  in 
a  great  measure  the  wishes  of  the  English,  and  particularly  set 
himself  in  opposition  to  the  Government  of  New  York.  But 
the  views  of  Burnct,  in  regard  to  the  direct  trade,  backed  by 
the  presents  displayed  to  the  savages,  met  their  approbation  in 
despite  of  Joncaire  and  the  Jesuits."  Dunlap  adds  that  the 
conduct  of  Joncaire  is  only  paralleled  by  that  of  the  Jesuit 
Ralle  (Rasle).  "It  is  not  improbable,"  he  continues,  "that 
Joncaire  as  well  as  Rallc,  was  of  the  Society  of  Jesuits,  for  it 
is  the  policy  of  this  insidious  combination  that  its  members 
shall  appear  as  laymen,  in  many  instances,  rather  than  as  ec- 
clesiastics." He  elsewhere  speaks  of  the  influence  of  "  the 
Jesuits,  Longucil  and  Jonceau."  In  references  like  this  to 
Joncaire,  he  may  naturally  have  been  confused  with  his  priest 
brother,  Francois. 

Obviously  hostile,  with  the  old-time  prejudice  of  his  kind, 
to  the  work  of  the  Catholic  missionaries,  Dunlap  nevertheless 
does  a  certain  justice  to  Joncaire,  in  bringing  out  this  phase 
of  his  activities.  There  is  no  warrant  found  in  the  documents 
for  the  supposition  that  Joncaire  was  a  member  of  the  Society 
of  Jesus  ;  many  things  indicate  that  he  was  not.  Nor  was  he, 
probably,  above  the  average  standard  of  morality  among  the 
French  soldiers  of  his  day  —  a  type,  as  we  well  know,  not 
conspicuous  either  for  piety  or  purity.  But  it  remains  true 
that  Joncaire's  services  among  the  Senecas  were  calculated  to 

""History  of  the  New  Netherlands,"  etc.,  by  William  Dunlap  (X.  Y., 
1839),  Vol.  'l,  pp.  J8(i,  JS7. 


296  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

help  on  the  efforts  of  the  missionaries,  who  found  him  an  in- 
valuable ally  against  the  ungodly  English. 

There  exists,  of  date  1725,  a  memoir  "  by  a  member  of  the 
Congregation  of  St.  Lazare,"  in  which  various  measures  are 
urged  to  prevent  the  English  from  working  injury  to  the  colony 
of  Canada  and  the  cause  of  true  religion  among  the  Indians. 
The  author  suggests  that  the  Recollects  (who  were  Francis- 
cans), should  be  allowed  to  remain  at  any  posts  where  they 
then  were,  in  capacity  of  missionaries  or  chaplains ;  and  that 
in  these  capacities  they  be  sent  to  posts  which  should  thereafter 
be  established,  where  regular  parochial  organization  could  not 
be  effected;  but  that  the  Jesuits,  who  preferred  to  be  mission- 
aries among  the  Indians  rather  than  chaplains  at  the  French 
posts,  might  nevertheless  be  established  at  Niagara,  "  in  order 
that  from  this  post  they  may  carry  on  their  mission  among  the 
Iroquois.  It  is  highly  important  to  the  Colony  to  establish 
and  to  maintain  these  missions  in  the  interests  of  France.  To 
the  end  that  the  Jesuits  may  find  means  to  hold  the  Iroquois 
nations  it  is  desirable  to  give  to  them  a  tract  of  land  near 
Niagara  where  they  may  build  a  house  and  make  an  establish- 
ment." 

This  plea  for  a  Jesuit  establishment  at  Niagara,  which, 
plausibly,  was  made  with  the  knowledge  and  endorsal  of  Jon- 
caire,  was  not  granted ;  but  when  the  new  post  was  garrisoned, 
it  is  probable  that  the  first  priest  who  as  chaplain  accompanied 
troops  thither,  was  a  Jesuit.  The  traditions  of  the  post  al- 
ready associated  it  with  that  order.  At  least  three  Jesuits 
had  been  at  the  short-lived  Fort  Dcnonville  on  the  same  spot  - 
Fathers  Enjalran,  Lamberville  and  Milet.  No  priest  is  men- 
tioned among  the  soldiers  who  brought  new  life  and  stir  to 
the  old  plateau  in  1726.  The  first  clergyman  of  whom  we  find 
record  at  Fort  Niagara  was  Father  Emmanuel  Crespel,  also  a 
Jesuit.  He  was  stationed  there  for  about  three  years  from 
1729,  interrupting  his  ministrations  there  with  a  short  sojourn 
at  Detroit  where  a  mission  of  his  order  had  been  established. 

Of  Fort  Niagara  at  this  time  he  says:  "  I  found  the  place 
very  agreeable;  hunting  and  fishing  were  very  productive;  the 
woods  in  their  greatest  beauty,  and  full  of  walnut  and  chestnut 


ANNALS  OF  THE  WILDERNESS  297 

trees,  oaks,  elms  and  some  others,  far  superior  to  any  we  see 
in  France.  The  fever,"  he  continues,  "  soon  destroyed  the 
pleasures  we  began  to  find,  and  much  incommoded  us,  until 
the  beginning  of  autumn,  which  season  dispelled  the  unwhole- 
some air.  We  passed  the  winter  very  quietly,  and  would  have 
passed  it  very  agreeably,  if  the  vessel  which  was  to  have 
brought  us  refreshments  had  not  encountered  a  storm  on  the 
lake,  and  been  obliged  to  put  back  to  Frontcnac,  which  laid 
us  under  the  necessity  of  drinking  nothing  but  water.  As  the 
winter  advanced  she  dared  not  proceed,  and  we  did  not  receive 
our  stores  until  May.''  Father  Crespel  records  that  while  at 
Niagara  he  learned  the  Iroquois  —  probably  the  Seneca  —  and 
Ottawa  languages  well  enough  to  converse  with  the  Indians. 
'"  This  enabled  me,"  he  writes,  "  to  enjoy  their  company  when 
I  took  a  walk  in  the  environs  of  the  post."  *"  The  ability  to 
talk  with  Indians  afterward  saved  his  life.  When  his  three 
years  of  residence  at  Niagara  expired,  he  was  relieved,  accord- 
ing to  the  custom  of  his  order,  and  he  passed  a  season  in  the 
convent  at  Quebec.  While  he  was,  no  doubt,  succeeded  at 
Niagara  by  another  chaplain,  it  is  not  until  some  years  later 
that  we  find  in  the  archives  any  mention  of  a  priest  at  that 
post. 

In  1731  Joncaire  entered  upon  a  new  service,  which,  appar- 
ently, was  to  be  his  chief  employment  for  the  few  remaining 
years  of  his  life.  He  was  now  past  sixty  years.  Grown  gray 
in  the  King's  service,  seasoned  by  a  lifetime  of  exposure  and 
arduous  wilderness  experience,  wise  in  the  ways  of  the  Indian, 
and  understanding  the  intrigues  and  ambitions  of  the  English, 
he  was  preeminently  a  man  to  be  entrusted  with  an  important 
mission.  It  is  not  to  be  inferred,  however,  that  his  lifetime  of 
service  on  the  outposts  had  cut  him  off  from  the  official,  the 
military  or  the  domestic  associations  of  Quebec  and  Montreal. 
The  latter  town,  then  of  not  above  5,000  inhabitants,  was  his 

10  "  Voiayes  du  /?.  P.  Emmanuel  Crespel,  dans  Ic  Canada  et  xon  nanfrage 
en  rerrnant  en  1'r/tncf.  Min  nn  jnur  /icr  le  Sr,  Lmtit  Cri'*i>i-l,  x<>n  i'rire. 
A  Franrfort  xur  1<>  .V >''/".  171.'."  There  are  numerous  editions:  1st  Ger- 
man, Frankfort  and  Leipsi<r,  Hal;  ;?d  French,  Frankfort,  175,';  Amsterdam, 
17,">7;  an  Knirlish  edition,  1797,  etc.,  with  numerous  variations  in  title.  The 
rare  first  edition  was  reprinted  at  Quebec  in  l^Sl. 


298  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

home ;  and  there,  from  1707  to  1723,  Madame  de  Joncaire  bore 
to  him,  as  we  have  already  noted,  ten  children,  the  eldest  of 
whom,  Philippe  Thomas,  and  his  younger  brother  Daniel,  known 
respectively  as  Joncaire  the  younger  and  Chabert,  are  both 
to  bear  a  part  in  the  history  of  the  Niagara.  In  1731,  Jon- 
caire, Jr.,  then  about  twenty-four  years  old,  accompanied  his 
father  to  the  Senecas'  villages,  and  probably  to  Niagara.  He 
had  even  then  "  resided  a  long  time  among  those  Indians  "  and 
was  "  thoroughly  conversant  with  their  language."  But  now 
he  was  to  be  intrusted  with  new  responsibilities;  he  was  to  as- 
sume the  role  which  his  father  had  filled  for  so  many  years 
among  these  vacillating  and  uncertain  people.  Reporting  on 
these  arrangements  to  the  French  Minister,  de  Maurepas,  in 
October,  1731,  Beauharnois  wrote:  "There  is  reason  to  be- 
lieve that  Sieur  de  Joncaire's  presence  among  the  Iroquois  has 
been  a  check  on  them  as  regards  the  English,  and  that  by 
keeping  a  person  of  some  influence  constantly  among  them,  we 
shall  succeed  in  entirely  breaking  up  the  secret  intrigues  they 
have  together.  On  the  other  hand,  the  Iroquois  will  be  more 
circumspect  in  their  proceedings,  and  less  liable  to  fall  into  the 
snares  of  the  English,  when  they  have  some  one  convenient  to 
consult  with,  and  in  whom  they  will  have  confidence.  Sieur  de 
Joncaire's  son  is  well  adapted  for  that  mission." 

The  story  of  this  son,  and  his  share  in  Niagara  history,  be- 
long for  the  most  part  to  a  later  period  than  we  are  now  con- 
sidering. It  may  be  noted  here,  however,  that  it  was  the  brother 
Chabert  who,  in  the  winter  of  1734,  came  from  Montreal 
to  Fort  Niagara  on  snowshoes,  bringing  letters  from  the  Gov- 
ernor. He  returned  through  the  heart  of  New  York  State, 
visiting  the  Iroquois  villages  en  route.  He  was  then  in  his 
twenty-seventh  year ;  active,  hardy,  speaking  the  Seneca  and 
probably  other  dialects  of  the  Iroquois  as  well  as  his  native 
French,  "  wise  and  full  of  ardor  for  the  service."  Later  in  this 
year  he  was  serving  in  the  company  commanded  by  Desnoyelles, 
and  from  this  time  on  his  career  becomes  more  and  more  a 
part  of  Niagara  history. 

It  is  plain  that  no  credence  was  given  by  Beauharnois  to  the 
reports  reflecting  on  the  integrity  of  the  elder  Joncaire's  char- 


ANNALS  OF  THE  WILDERNESS  299 

acter.  That  he  was  thoroughly  loyal  to  the  French  might  also 
be  inferred  from  the  responsibility  of  his  new  mission.  He 
was  entrusted  with  the  removal  to  a  new  place  of  residence  of 
the  Chaouanons. 

These  people  are  better  known  as  the  Shawanese.  To  enter 
fully  into  their  history  here  would  be  to  travel  afar  from  our 
especial  theme.  It  will  suffice  to  state  that  they  were  of  south- 
ern origin.  About  1698,  three  or  four  score  families  of  them, 
with  the  consent  of  the  Governor  of  Pennsylvania,  removed  from 
Carolina  and  established  themselves  on  the  Susquehanna,  at 
Conestoga.  Others  followed,  so  that  by  1732,  when  the  number 
of  Indian  fighting  men  in  Pennsylvania  was  estimated  at  about 
700,  one  half  of  them  were  Shawanese  immigrants.  About  the 
year  1724  the  Delaware  Indians,  in  quest  of  better  hunting- 
grounds,  removed  from  their  old  seats  on  the  Delaware  and 
Susquehanna  rivers,  to  the  lower  Allegheny,  upper  Ohio,  and  its 
branches,  and  from  1728  the  Shawanese  gradually  followed  them. 

The  friendship  of  these  Ohio  Delawares  and  Shawanese  be- 
came an  object  of  rivalry  for  the  British  and  French;  the  in- 
terests of  the  latter  among  them  were  now  confided  to  Joncaire. 
The  vanguard  of  the  Shawanese  migrants  appears  to  have 
gained  the  upper  Ohio  as  early  as  1724,  for  in  that  year  we 
find  that  Vaudreuil  had  taken  measures  to  weld  them  to  the 
French.  An  interpreter,  Cavelier,  had  been  sent  among  them, 
and  had  even  induced  four  of  their  chiefs  to  go  with  him  to 
Montreal,  where  they  received  the  customary  assurances  of 
French  friendship.  At  this  date,  the  Ohio  Shawanese  num- 
bered over  700,  but  their  attachment  to  the  English  appears  to 
have  been  even  greater  than  to  the  French.  They  evidently 
paid  some  respect  to  the  authority  of  the  French  in  the  Ohio 
Valley,  for  on  this  Montreal  visit  they  asked  if  the  French  Gov- 
ernor "  would  receive  them,  and  where  he  would  wish  to  locate 
them."  Beauharnois  replied  that  he  would  "  leave  them  en- 
tirely at  liberty  to  select,  themselves,  a  country  where  they 
might  live  conveniently  and  within  the  sound  of  their  Father's 
voice  "•—/.  r.,  within  French  influence;  "that  they  might  re- 
port, the  next  year,  the  place  they  will  have  chosen,  and  he 
should  see  if  it  were  suitable  for  them." 


300 

In  the  spring  of  1732  Joncaire  reported  to  the  Governor 
that  these  Indians  were  settled  in  villages  ("en  village") 
"  on  the  other  side  of  the  beautiful  river  of  Oyo,  six  leagues 
below  the  river  Atigue.  The  "  Beautiful  river,"  or  Ohio,  at 
that  time  designated  the  present  Ohio  and  the  Allegheny  to  its 
source.  The  Atigue  ai  was  the  Riviere  au  Boeuf,  now  known 
as  Le  Boeuf  Creek  or  Venango  River.  This  seat  of  the  Shaw- 
anese,  therefore,  was  a  few  miles  below  the  present  city  of 
Franklin,  Pa.  To  them  Joncaire  was  remanded  with  gifts  and 
instructions  to  keep  English  traders  away,  and  to  do  all  possi- 
ble to  cement  their  friendship  with  the  French. 

In  this  connection  may  be  noted  a  curious  statement  made 
by  an  old  Seneca  chief,  whose  name  is  written  by  the  French 
as  Oninquoinonte.  Being  with  Joncaire  at  Montreal  in  1732, 
the  Seneca  made  a  speech  to  the  Governor  in  which  he  said: 
"  You  know,  my  father,  it  is  I  who  made  it  easy  to  build  the 
stone  house  at  Niagara,  my  abode  having  always  been  there. 
Since  I  cannot  conquer  my  love  for  strong  drink,  I  surrender 
that  place  and  establish  myself  in  another  place,  at  the  port- 
age of  the  Le  Boeuf  River,  which  was  and  is  the  rendezvous 
of  the  Chaouanons."  He  added  with  unwonted  ardor,  that 
the  French  were  masters  of  all  this  region,  and  he  would  die 
sooner  than  not  sustain  them  in  their  work  of  settling  the 
Shawanese. 

A  fair  degree  of  success  appears  to  have  rewarded  Joncaire's 
efforts.  He  is  hereafter  spoken  of  as  commandant  among  the 
Shawanese,  and  his  residence  for  a  considerable  part  of  each 
year  was  in  the  beautiful  valley  that  stretches  between  long- 
sloping  hills  below  the  junction  of  the  Venango  and  the  Alle- 
gheny. Already  a  historic  region,  it  was  destined  in  a  few 
years  to  be  the  scene  of  important  events  which  should  link 
its  story  yet  more  closely  with  that  of  the  Niagara.  Here 
at  the  junction  of  the  rivers,  Washington  is  to  camp  on  his 
way  to  demand  that  the  French  withdraw  from  the  region. 
Here  France  is  soon  to  stretch  her  chain  of  forest-buried  forts, 
that  rope  of  sand  on  which  she  vainly  relied  for  the  control  of 
a  continent. 

11  See  Bcllin's  "  Carte  de  la  Louisiana." 


ANNALS  OF  THE  WILDERNESS  301 

The  disposition  to  migrate  further  west,  shown  by  several  of 
the  Indian  tribes  at  this  period,  gave  a  remarkable  turn  to  the 
policies  of  the  rival  white  nations  on  the  continent.  It  was  an 
early  wave  in  the  movement  of  an  inevitable  flood;  though  there 
is  little  in  the  old  records  to  indicate  that  either  the  English 
or  French  sawr  very  far  into  the  future,  or  gave  much  heed  to 
anything  save  relations  of  immediate  profit  and  advantage. 
The  migrations  of  the  Shawanese  covered  many  years,  and  in- 
cluded many  removes.  In  1736  Joncaire  found  his  villages  on 
the  Allegheny  restless  with  the  prospect  of  a  new  settlement 
in  the  vicinity  of  Detroit,  on  lands  ranged  over  by  their  friends 
the  Ilurons.  The  next  year,  the  sale  by  the  Senecas  and 
Cayugas  of  certain  lands  on  the  Susquehanna,  near  where  some 
of  the  Shawanese  had  continued  to  live,  started  a  new  migra- 
tion, and  fostered  bitterness  towards  the  English.  From  this 
time  on  for  many  years  —  for  many  years  indeed  after  the  fall 
of  New  France  —  we  find  traces  of  the  Shawanese  at  many 
points  in  the  Ohio  and  Mississippi  Valleys ;  and  not  until  the 
French  were  finally  forced  out  did  the  rivalry  cease  for  the 
friendship  of  these  shifty  and  uncertain  savages  ;  not,  obviously, 
for  the  sake  of  that  friendship,  but  because  the  rival  Powers 
deemed  it  essential  for  their  control  of  the  inland  highways  and 
of  the  fur  trade. 

Regarding  the  proposed  settlement  at  Detroit,  the  Shawanese 
pledged  themselves  to  Joncaire  to  go  to  Montreal  in  the  spring 
of  1737,  "to  hear  the  Marquis  de  Beauharnois  discourse  on 
their  migration."  Louis  XV,  whose  phrase  has  just  been 
quoted,12  thought  that  the  proposed  settlement  "  is  very  de- 
sirable, so  as  to  protect  the  fidelity  of  these  Indians  against  the 
insinuations  of  the  English.  But  the  delay  they  interpose  to 
that  movement  induces  His  Majesty  to  apprehend  that  the 
Marquis  de  Beauharnois  will  meet  with  more  difficulties  than 
he  had  anticipated,  and  that  the  English,  with  whom  His 
Majesty  is  informed  they  trade,  had  made  sufficient  progress 
among  them  to  dissuade  them  therefrom." 

And  the  main  instrument  on  whom  both  Governor  and  King 
relied  was  the  veteran  Joncaire.  But  the  time  of  his  achieve- 

i- Dispatches,    Versailles,    May    10,    17:57. 


302  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

mcnts  was  at  an  end.  On  June  29,  1739,  he  died  at  Niagara. 
A  band  of  Shawanese,  conducted  by  Douville  de  la  Saussaye, 
reached  Montreal  on  July  21st  following,  and  carried  the  news 
of  the  death  of  the  veteran.  As  the  dispatches  speak  of  the 
receipt  at  Montreal  of  news  of  his  death,  and  do  not  state  that 
his  body  was  carried  there,  the  conclusion  is  at  least  plausible 
that  he  was  buried  somewhere  at  Niagara. 

On  September  12,  1740,  the  Five  Nations  sent  a  deputation 
to  Montreal,  where  they  addressed  M.  de  Beaucourt,  the  Gov- 
ernor, with  much  ceremony  and  the  presentation  of  many  wam- 
pum belts.     "  Father,"  said  their  spokesman,  extending  a  large 
belt,  "  you  see  our  ceremony ;  we  come  to  bewail  your  dead,  our 
deceased  son,  Monsieur  de  Joncaire ;  with  this  belt  we  cover 
his  body  so  that  nothing  may  damage  it.   ...  The  misfortune 
which  has  overtaken  us  has  deprived  us  of  light ;  by  this  belt 
[giving  a  small  white  one]  I  put  the  clouds  aside  to  the  right 
and  to  the  left,  and  replace  the  sun  in  its  meridian.     Father," 
the  orator  continued,  holding  out  another  string  of  wampum, 
"  by  this  belt  I  again  kindle  the  fire  which  had  gone  out  through 
our  son's  death  " ;  then,  by  way  of  condolence,  with  still  another 
belt :     "  We  know  that  pain  and  sorrow  disturb  the  heart,  and 
cause  bile;   by   this  belt,   we   give  you   a   medicine  which   will 
cleanse  your  heart,  and  cheer  you  up."     Eight  days  later,  the 
Governor,  who  had  been  detained  at  Quebec,  sent  reply  to  the 
warriors :     "  You  had  cause  to  mourn  for  your  son  Joncaire, 
and  to  cover  his  body ;  you  have  experienced  a  great  loss,  for 
he   loved  you   much.     I   regret   him  like  you."     The  marquis 
promised  to  send  back  with  them  Joncaire's  son,  already  well 
known  to  them.      "  He  will  fill,  near  you,  the  same  place  as  your 
late  son.     Listen  attentively  to  whatever  he  will  say  to  you  from 
me."     And   thenceforth,   in   the   affections    of   the    Senecas    of 
Western  New  York,  the  son  is  to  reign  in  his  father's  stead. 
The  story  of  Chabert  dc  Joncaire  the  elder  is  ended. 

NOTE. —  Much  of  the  data  in  the  foregoing  chapters,  especially  chapters 
XIV  and  XV,  is  drawn  from  the  imprinted  "  Correspondance  Gtndrale,"  and 
accompanying  mf'moircs,  special  reports  and  letters  preserved  in  the 
Archives  at  Paris,  and  in  part,  by  means  of  copies,  in  the  Archives  at 
Ottawa. 


CHAPTER  XVI 

SOXS  OF  THE  ELDER  JONCAIRE 

THE  VARIED  SERVICES  OF  PHILIPPE  THOMAS,  DANIEL  AND  FRAN- 
COIS DE  JONCAIRE  —  THE  VALUABLE  MEMOIR  OF  DANIEL  — 
THE  EXPEDITION  OF  1739  AND  DISCOVERY  OF  LAKE  CHAUTAU- 
QUA —  A  NIAGARA  INCIDENT. 

IF  any  ambitious  student  of  French-American  history  would 
have  problems  to  solve,  he  may  find  what  he  seeks  by  attempt- 
ing to  set  forth  clearly  the  records  of  the  sons  of  Louis  Thomas 
de  Joncaire.  The  part  they  played  in  New  York  State,  in 
Canada  and  the  Ohio  Valley  during  the  last  20  years  of  French 
dominion,  makes  it  worth  while  to  record  all  that  can  be  veri- 
fied about  them.  The  father  and  two  of  the  sons  were  the 
most  influential  agents  the  French  ever  sent  among  the  Iroquois. 
For  many  years,  their  influence  was  the  greatest  force  opposed 
to  Colonel  (later  Sir)  William  Johnson  and  the  English  Gov- 
ernors of  New  York  Province. 

The  father's  achievements  are  comparatively  clear,  and  have 
been  set  forth  with  sufficient  fullness  in  preceding  pages.  But 
from  the  time  of  his  death  to  the  downfall  of  France  in  Amer- 
ica, although  the  activities  of  his  sons  brought  them  into  fre- 
quent notice,  there  is  nothing  but  confusion  and  contradiction 
among  all  writers  who  speak  of  them  at  all.1 

i  Much  of  the  confusion  that  exists  in  references  to  Joncaire  and  his 
sons  is  due  to  the  fact  that  writers  have  not  noted  the  death  of  the  elder 
Joncaire  in  1739;  although  it  is  matter  of  precise  record  in  the  French 
documents,  and  of  approximate  accuracy  in  English  records.  It  was 
known  to  the  New  York  Indian  Commissioners  at  Albany  at  least  as 
early  as  March  If),  1710  (X.  S.),  when  an  Onondaga  Indian  went  to  them 
"  with  7  hands  of  wampum  to  acquaint  them  that  the  Sachems  of  their 
Castle  intend  as  soon  as  the  Waters  are  open  to  go  to  Canada  to  condole 
the  Death  of  Jean  C<rur,  and  to  invite  the  other  Sachems  of  the  5  Nations 
to  join  them  in  this  Ceremony."  (Mcllwain's  "  Wraxall,"  216.)  The  Eng- 
lish may  naturally  have  rejoiced  at  his  death,  hut  they  also  professed  to  be 
angry  with  the  Indians  who  would  show  respect  to  his  memory.  They 
sent  Lawrence  Claessen  to  the  Mohawk  and  Onondaga  towns  to  notify  the 
tribes  that  the  Lieutenant  Governor  of  New  York  "would  take  it  ex- 

303 


304  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

If  one  turns  to  the  documents,  he  finds  the  name  in  many 
forms;  and  the  English,  especially  Sir  William  Johnson,  who 
rarely  wrote  a  French  name  correctly,  gave  it  many  strange 
spellings,  so  that  the  student  finds  it  as  Joncaire,  Joncoeur, 
Jonkeur,  Jonquaire,  Joan  Coeur,  Jean  Ceur,  Jean  Ceure,  and 
in  other  forms.  This  variety  leads  to  no  particular  difficulty. 
Confusion  sets  in  when  use  is  made,  not  of  the  name,  but  of 
the  seigneurial  title.  The  elder  Joncaire,  who  died  at  Niagara 
in  1739,  was  the  Sieur  de  Chabert,  an  official  interpreter  and 
lieutenant,  and  is  often  spoken  of  as  Chabert,  or  Joncaire- 
Chabert. 

He  had  a  large  family.  Four  of  his  sons  were  in  the  army, 
colonial  troops  or  the  Indian  service.  Two  of  them  were  killed 
early  in  life,  and  may  be  eliminated  from  the  problem.  One 
became  a  priest  and  resided  in  France.  Two  others  lived  for 

treamly  ill  to  have  them  absent  in  Canada  condoling  the  Death  of  a  Man 
who  had  ever  been  an  inveterate  Enemy  to  this  Colony."  (76.) 

In  his  Life  of  Washington,  published  (vol.  I)  in  1855,  Washington  Irving 
falls  into  the  error  of  confusing  the  Joncaire  who  met  Washington  at  Ven- 
ango  in  1754  with  his  deceased  father.  On  Washington's  arrival  at  Ven- 
ango,  says  Irving,  he  "  inquired  of  three  French  officers  whom  he  saw  there, 
where  the  commandant  resided.  One  of  them  promptly  replied  that  '  he 
had  command  of  the  Ohio.'  It  was  in  fact,  the  redoubtable  Captain  Jon- 
caire, the  veteran  intriguer  of  the  frontier."  The  "  veteran  "  Joncaire  had 
been  dead  15  years,  and  would  have  been  84  years  old  had  he  still  lived  — 
rather  aged  for  strenuous  frontier  service. 

We  have  no  more  trustworthy  historian  of  the  French  in  America  than 
Francis  Parkman.  His  scope  is  continental,  and  his  thoroughness  and 
accuracy  beyond  question.  Only  one  who  has  in  some  measure  traversed 
the  same  documents  that  he  studied,  can  realize  how  unassailable  his  state- 
ments usually  are.  It  is  therefore  in  no  spirit  of  pettiness  that  we  note 
that  in  his  "  Half  Century  of  Conflict "  the  senior  Joncaire  and  one  of  his 
sons  are  spoken  of  as  the  same  person,  and  no  distinction  is  made  between 
them  in  the  index. 

Franklin  B.  Hough's  translation  of  Pouchot's  "Memoir"  goes  further 
in  error.  It  indexes  "  Jean  Coeur "  as  one  person,  and  "  Joncaire  (or 
Jonquiere)  "  as  another;  an  amazing  blunder,  for  Jonquiere  was  an  admiral 
of  the  French  Xavy,  and  a  Governor  of  Canada,  but  in  no  wise  connected 
with  the  family  of  Joncaire. 

These  are  but  sample  errors.  Less  capable  writers  and  editors  have  in- 
creased them  a  thousand  fold.  One  modern  instance  occurs  in  Augustus  C. 
Buell's  "  Sir  William  Johnson,"  in  which  some  of  the  deeds  of  Daniel  de 
Joncaire  are  ascribed  to  one  "  Jean  Francois  Joncaire,"  and  many  state- 
ments are  made  utterly  at  variance  with  the  testimony  of  contemporary 
documents. 


SONS  OF  THE  ELDER  JONCAIRE  305 

many  years,  and  the  story  of  Western  New  York  from  1740 
to  1759  cannot  be  told  without  frequent  mention  of  them. 

The  eldest  son,  Philippe  Thomas  de  Joncaire,  in  1739,  on 
the  death  of  his  father,  became  "  Sieur  de  Joncaire  et  Chabert." 
He  was  occasionally  called  Hardi,  from  the  name  of  his  pa- 
ternal grandmother.  In  his  later  years  he  was  oftenest  spoken 
of  as  Captain  Joncaire,  and  we  will  so  refer  to  him,  to  distin- 
guish him  from  his  father  and  brothers. 

Daniel  de  Joncaire,  Philippe's  junior  by  at  least  seven 
years,2  was  the  "  Sieur  de  Chabert  et  de  Clausonne."  He  is 
designated  in  the  documents  and  reports  of  his  own  time,  now 
as  Chabert,  now  as  Joncaire-Chabert,  again  as  Chabert  de 
Joncaire,  and  sometimes  as  Clausonne  or  Clauzon.  In  these 
pages  he  will  be  called  Chabert. 

The  service  in  which  the  two  brothers  were  engaged  was  at 
some  periods  the  same,  and  they  went  and  came  throughout  the 
same  region.  Many  a  reference  to  them  as  "  Joncaire  "  or 
"  Chabert  "  it  is  impossible  to  refer  with  certainty  to  Philippe 
Thomas,  or  to  Daniel.3 

A  third  brother  enters  slightly  into  our  story.  This  was 
Francois,  born  at  Montreal,  June  20,  1723.  He  was  ordained 
priest,  and  signed  his  name  "  Francois  de  Joncaire."  He 
early  removed  to  France,  where  he  became  Vicar  of  Grasse. 
Further  note  of  his  activities  will  be  made  in  due  place. 

The  eldest  son,  Philippe  Thomas,  born  1707,  was  taken  by 
his  father  when  a  little  boy  of  ten,  to  live  with  the  Indians. 
Thomas  Wildman,  an  Indian  who  had  been  sent  to  the  Onon- 
dagas  to  spy  on  the  French,  reported  to  the  Indian  Commis- 
sioners at  Albany,  January  11,  1717  (N.  S.),  that  "Jean 
Coeur  the  French  interpreter  had  introduced  a  little  son  of 
his  to  the  Indians  in  the  Senecas'  country  and  desired  their  pro- 

2  Nine,  according  to  Tanguay. 

•^  In  the  "  Documents  relating  to  the  Colonial  History  of  the  State  of 
New  York,"  very  ably  edited  many  years  ago  by  Dr.  O'Callaghan,  many 
documents  appear,  as  copied  from  the  originals  in  London  or  Paris.  The 
very  full  index  to  these  volumes  contains  more  than  a  page  of  entries  re- 
lating to  the  Messrs.  Joncaire.  The  present  writer  has  been  unable  to 
reconcile  some  of  these  statements  with  the  facts  which  he  has  from  other 
sources. 


306  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

tection  and  favor  for  him,  that  after  his  death  this  his  son 
might  be  received  amongst  them  in  the  same  friendly  manner 
as  he  himself  had  ever  been;  upon  which  he  gave  them  a  belt 
of  wampum  and  they  readily  assented."  4  Wildman  further  re- 
ported that  "  Jean  Coeur  had  a  little  trading  house  in  the 
Senecas'  country  by  the  side  of  the  lake  where  he  kept  goods 
and  traded  with  them,  also  a  smith  to  work  for  them."  This 
was  in  the  vicinity  of  old  Kanadasaga,  near  the  present  Geneva, 
N.  Y. 

Ten  years  later  we  find  Philippe  Thomas  with  his  father  at 
Fort  Niagara;  from  which  post,  in  1727,  he  was  sent  to  the 
Senecas  to  get  news  of  a  council  which  had  been  held  at  Albany. 
In  Montreal,  July  23,  1731,  he  married  Madeleine  Renoud  du 
Buisson;  she  died  about  1746.  In  an  official  list  of  1732  5  he 
is  mentioned  as  an  ensign,  aged  24.  In  April,  1736,  the  King 
granted  him  promotion  to  ensign  en  pied,  a  rank  which  carried 
pay.  In  1744  he  was  made  lieutenant,  and  in  1751  promoted 
to  a  captaincy,  by  reason  of  seniority  in  service ;  and  because 
of  the  requirement  that  he  reside  most  of  the  time  among  the 
Iroquois,  he  was  given  the  rank  and  pay  of  captain,  without  a 
company.0  For  the  next  few  years  he  was  sometimes  at  Nia- 
gara, but  oftener  among  the  tribes  of  Central  and  Western 
New  York,  and  the  Allegheny  Valley.  On  his  father's  death 
in  1739,  Philippe  was  looked  to  as  his  natural  successor  as  chief 
agent  for  the  French  among  the  Iroquois.  In  September, 
1740,  these  people  sent  a  great  delegation  to  Montreal  to  ask 
that  he  be  so  appointed.  The  Governor  granted  their  request, 
and  Philippe  truly  enough  "  reigned  in  his  father's  stead." 

Captain  Joncaire  —  to  use  the  title  of  his  later  years  —  be- 
came associated  with  the  Abbe  Picquet,  who  in  1749  founded 
the  famous  mission  of  La  Presentation  on  the  site  of  the  pres- 
ent city  of  Ogdensburg.  It  is  stated  by  a  careful  student,7 
that  it  was  Captain  Joncaire  who  built  the  fort  at  La  Presenta- 
tion, "  aided  by  Picquet,"  and  that  a  little  later  he  built  another 

4\Vraxairs   N.  Y.   Indian   Records    (Mcllwain,  ed.),   117. 

s  Canadian  Archives,  Ottawa. 

n  Navy  Board  to  La  Jonquiere,  June  0,  1751. 

7  The  Abbe  Daniel,  in  his  Life  of  the  Chevalier  Bcnoist,  p.  49. 


SONS  OF  THE  ELDER  JONCAIRE  307 

on  Lake  Ontario.  This  last  is  uncertain ;  but  certain  it  is  that 
the  militant  priest  and  the  adroit  and  experienced  Indian  agent 
and  interpreter  were  long  and  closely  associated;  so  intimately 
indeed  that  by  early  English  writers  Captain  Joncaire  was 
sometimes  termed  a  priest.  On  the  other  hand,  the  Abbe  Pic- 
quet,  in  1751,  mentions  Captain  Joncaire's  Indian  wife. 

Naturally,  the  death  of  the  father  brought  forward  both  of 
the  sons.  Daniel  in  that  year  served  as  interpreter  at  Ni- 
agara and  elsewhere,  and  in  official  reports  was  commended 
for  his  zeal  and  efficiency.  lie  shared  in  the  Chicasaw  cam- 
paign of  1739,  as  cadet  a  Vaiguillcttc  —  the  lowest  grade  of 
officer.  On  his  return  he  was  made  ensign  en  second.  At  the 
time  of  his  marriage,  January  11,  1751,  he  was  a  lieutenant, 
beyond  which  rank  he  did  not  advance. 

Chabert's  part  in  our  frontier  history  is  more  important 
than  his  brother's,  and  much  more  may  be  definitely  told  about 
him.  After  the  conquest  of  Canada,  and  on  his  part,  a  series 
of  vicissitudes  and  misfortunes  which  will  presently  be  narrated, 
Chabert  settled  at  Detroit.  From  that  day  to  this  his  family 
has  been  numerously  represented  in  Detroit  and  vicinity, 
though  now  the  generations  are  much  scattered.  From  the 
parish  records  of  St.  Anne's  Church,  Detroit,  and  from  a  manu- 
script genealogy  8  of  the  family  of  Daniel,  prepared  largely 
from  those  parish  records  by  the  Rev.  Father  Denissen,  some 
of  the  facts  in  the  following  pages  are  gathered.  It  may  be 
noted  here  that  Daniel,  whom  we  are  to  speak  of  as  Chabert, 
had  a  large  family.  One  of  his  sons  was  Colonel  Francis 
Chabert ;  and  it  is  matter  of  record  in  the  family  that  of  about 
100  descendants  of  Colonel  Francis  only  two  bear  the  name 
Chabert.  Descent  has  been  in  the  female  lines.  So  far  as  the 
present  writer  has  carried  his  inquiries,  he  has  found  no  member 
of  the  family  using  the  old  name  Joncaire.  In  America  at  least 
it  seems  to  have  been  wholly  supercedcd  by  Chabert,  and  this 
in  turn  is  nearly  lost,  later  generations  bearing  other  names 
gained  in  marriage.0 

Many  writers  refer  to  the  sons  of  the  first  Joncaire  in  Amer- 

s  Preserved  in  the  Burton  Library,  Detroit. 

a  For  further   genealogical  notes,   .see   Appendix. 


308  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

ica  as  having  an  Indian  mother.  Captain  Pouchot,  who  per- 
sonally knew  both  Captain  Joncaire  and  Chabert,  wrote  of  the 
former : 

"  This  colonial  captain  was  a  half  Indian  Canadian  living 
among  that  nation,  and  possessing  much  influence.  He  and  his 
brother  Chabert  had  more  than  sixty  relatives  and  children 
which  they  or  their  father  had  among  them."  10  This  matter 
has  been  touched  on,  in  sketching  the  father's  career.  It  may 
suffice  here  to  refer  to  the  genealogy  as  given  by  Tanguay, 
which  not  only  does  not  recognize  any  admixture  of  Indian 
strain,  but  gives  the  birth  dates  of  the  sons,  among  other 
children  of  the  French  woman  Madelaine  le  Guay,  who  was 
Madame  de  Joncaire.  The  obvious  explanation  is,  that  Cha- 
bert had  two  families,  'One  in  Montreal,  the  other,  a  Seneca 
wife  and  numerous  half-breed  children,  who  lived  either  at  the 
Niagara  portage  or  in  one  of  the  Western  New  York  villages, 
probably  Kanadasaga.  This  is  clearly  indicated  by  several 
allusions,  even  more  definite  than  Pouchot's.  When  Sir  Wil- 
liam Johnson  came  to  the  Niagara  in  1761  he  learned  that  the 
Senecas  had  sent  messengers  to  Detroit,  to  hold  council  with  the 
Hurons,  Ottawas  and  other  tribes,  more  or  less  hostile  to  the 
English.  An  Onondaga  told  him  that  the  message  "  was 
chiefly  spoken  in  Shabear  Jean  Coeur's  name,  who,  before  [be- 
ing] taken,  advised  that  step  to  be  taken,  in  case  the  French 
should  fall."  Sir  William  noted  in  his  private  diary  that 
"  Shabear's  son,  who  went  with  the  war  belt  to  Detroit,  was 
named  Taliaijdoris  ";  he  and  another  Seneca  had  undertaken 
to  stir  up  the  Western  Indians  against  the  English.  Years 
after,  the  memory  of  this  no  doubt  influenced  Sir  William,  for 
he  made  strong  objections  to  Chabcrt's  request  for  a  permit 
to  trade  at  Niagara  and  Detroit. 

Chabert  himself  said,  truly  enough,  that  his  relationship 
with  the  Senecas  was  that  of  adoption,  according  to  the  ancient 
custom  of  the  tribes  with  whom  his  father,  brother  and  him- 
self spent  a  large  part  of  their  lives.11 

10  Pouchot.     "  IW /'moires."     II,  33,  note. 

11  The  Abbe  Aujruste  Gosselin,  in  his  study  of  the  Abbe  Piequet   (Proc. 
Roy.  Soc.  Can.  1894)   says  of  Daniel  de  Joncaire:  "lie  was  a  Frenchman 


SONS  OF  THE  ELDER  JONCAIRE  300 

The  most  important  and  trustworthy  source  of  information 
about  Chabert  is  the  memoir  which  he  wrote,  or  his  lawyers 
wrote  for  him,  when  after  the  loss  of  Canada,  he  and  others 
were  prosecuted  by  the  French  Government  for  alleged  com- 
plicity in  frauds.  The  memoir  forms  part  of  the  voluminous 
report  of  the  commission  established  for  what  was  known  as 
"  the  Canada  Affair."  One  volume  is  largely  made  up  of  the 
"  Memoir  of  Daniel  de  Joncaire-Chabert,  late  commander  of 
the  Little  Fort  Niagara."  Printed  by  Government  in  Paris  in 
17(53,  it  has  never  been  put  into  English,  and  has  long  been — 
probably  has  always  been  —  excessively  rare.  One  of  the 
most  valuable  of  sources  for  our  regional  history  in  the  period 
under  consideration,  it  is  here  freely  used  to  picture  life  on  the 
Lakes  and  the  Niagara  in  the  last  two  decades  of  French  power. 

Whoever  would  sketch,  be  it  ever  so  faintly,  the  conditions 
of  native  life  in  Western  New  York  and  the  region  of  the 
Lower  Lakes,  as  seen  by  the  soldiers  and  traders  of  France, 
and  as  intimately  shared  in  by  a  few  men  of  the  type  of  the 
Joncaires,  must  give  due  recognition  to  the  known  phases  of 
existence  among  the  Senecas,  at  this  period. 

We  habitually  speak  of  them  as  savages,  and  as  the  foe  of 
the  white  man.  It  is  true,  they  were  savage,  but  the  Iroquois 
federation  of  which  they  were  a  part  had  passed  very  far  be- 
yond a  state  of  primitive  savagery.  At  the  time  of  the  first 
coming  of  white  men  among  them,  they  had  reached  a  degree 
of  enlightenment,  of  social  and  economic  order,  far  in  advance 
of  anything  known  elsewhere  on  the  continent.  What  ulti- 
mate form  it  would  have  taken,  if  the  evolution  could  have 
gone  on,  uncorrupted  bv  European  influence,  is  a  suggestive 
theme  for  speculation.  They  were  no  longer  nomads,  but  lived 
in  fixed  villages.  If  removal  to  new  sites  was  more  frequent 
than  among  Europeans,  it  was  because  made  necessary  by 
conditions  and  way  of  life. 

We  conceive  of  the  Indian  as  the  natural  enemy  of  the  white; 
an  unjust  conception,  ;is  applied  to  the  aborigines  in  Western 
New  York  at  this  period.  As  a  white  man's  town  contains 

married  to  an  Indian  woman,  who  enjoyed  great  credit  among  the  Indians." 
This  wholly  ignores  his   French-Canadian  wife. 


310  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

honest  men  and  thieves,  old  men  who  are  guided  by  reason  and 
young  men  who  yield  to  passion,  so  in  Seneca  communities  ex- 
isted like  diversity.  Many  times,  in  the  documents,  do  we 
find  the  old  men  of  a  nation  or  a  village  trying  to  condone 
some  rash  act  of  their  young  men.  The  war  parties  were  made 
up  of  young  men,  partly  because  they  were  physically  vigorous, 
partly  because  their  savagery  was  more  in  evidence  than  in 
maturer  years.  In  time  of  peace  the  Seneca  was  a  hospitable 
host.  Even  a  Frenchman,  intruding  into  their  villages,  unless 
suspected  of  crafty  and  treacherous  purpose,  would  find  a 
welcome,  food  and  shelter,  and  an  escort  on  his  way.  There 
are  many  instances  of  warm  personal  friendships  between  red 
men  and  white. 

When  Chabert,  for  instance,  made  his  long  sojourns  among 
the  Senecas,  he  resided,  as  they  did,  in  a  well-built  cabin  of 
bark.  There  was  no  regularity  of  streets  in  a  Seneca  town, 
but  the  houses  were  scattered,  like  the  trees  of  the  forest  that 
sheltered  them.  The  community  or  "  long  house,"  in  which 
many  families  lodged  under  one  roof,  which  was  the  earlier  cus- 
tom of  these  people,  gradually  gave  way  to  the  separate  hut. 
The  village  life  however  always  centered  around  one  principal 
point,  where  was  the  council  house,  place  of  meeting,  of  cere- 
monies, and  of  trade.  The  ancient  custom  of  surrounding 
their  villages  with  stockades  was  no  longer  observed. 

The  Senecas  had  no  wells,  and  so  fixed  their  abodes  con- 
venient to  springs  and  streams.  In  the  years  under  notice  — 
one  may  fairly  say,  throughout  the  Eighteenth  century  — 
they  relied  for  subsistence  quite  as  much  on  agriculture  as  on 
hunting  and  fishing.  We  rate  them  as  poor  farmers ;  yet  the 
first  whites  who  came  among  them  found  great  fields  of  corn, 
pumpkins  and  squashes.  They  had  orchards  of  apples  and 
plums.  They  raised  hogs ;  and  before  the  middle  of  the  cen- 
tury they  kept  cattle,  and  had  acquired  some  horses.  They 
were  expert  at  pottery-making  and  basketry,  and  showed  taste 
in  decoration. 

The  great  spur  of  modern  communities,  traffic  for  the  sake 
of  individual  gain,  had  no  place  among  the  Senecas.  They 
had  no  money.  Before  the  advent  of  the  white,  wampum  was 


SONS  OF  THE  ELDER  JONCAIRE  :311 

a  medium  of  exchange,  but  it  was  ceremonial.  It  was  more  in 
the  nature  of  a  message,  a  proclamation,  a  defiance,  a  con- 
dolence, than  for  the  payment  of  debt.  It  symbolized  a  great 
deal  for  which  the  civilization  of  the  white  had  no  counterpart. 

The  Indian  valued  trinkets  and  liquor  as  the  white  man 
valued  furs.  While  the  exchange  of  these  commodities  con- 
stituted a  true  trading  system,  for  many  decades,  it  never  pre- 
sented to  the  Indian  the  opportunity  of  profit.  He  might 
satisfy  his  immediate  needs  and  wants;  but  the  accumulation 
of  property  formed  no  part  of  his  scheme  of  life. 

When  Chabert  was  sent  by  the  Governor  to  winter  among 
the  Senecas,  what  did  he  find? 

He  traveled  over  paths  as  well  established  as  any  modern 
highway.  Save  for  a  few  swamps  and  treeless  bottom-lands 
in  river  valleys,  Western  New  York  was  a  forest  through 
which  ran  many  footpaths.  We  have  no  roads  to-day  as  old 
as  the  trails  that  Chabert  knew.  They  were  immemorial  in  his 
time  and  presented  the  same  features  they  had  borne  for  cen- 
turies: here  worn  deep  through  forest  loam,  winding  and  turn- 
ing about  great  roots  and  boulders ;  there  skirting  some  bog  or 
pond  ;  or,  scarcely  perceptible  to  an  untrained  eye,  following 
some  rocky  ridge;  yet  as  a  whole  making  a  direct  and  advan- 
tageous route  between  important  points.  One  great  trail, 
from  Lake  Erie  to  the  Hudson,  is  to-day,  for  much  of  the  way, 
the  course  of  the  \ew  York  Central  Railroad.  The  Indian 
trails  served  so  well  the  purpose  of  early  settlement  that  the 
first  white  men's  roads  followed  the  old  highways  of  travel  — 
of  the  beginning  of  which  no  man  knoweth.  Trees  were  cut 
and  tracks  were  widened.  Came  the  horse,  sometimes  the  train 
of  an  army;  then  the  surveyors,  the  pioneer's  wagon,  the  stage 
coach,  the  railway,  the  motor  car:  but  the  world  of  business 
and  of  pleasure  to-day  merely  rolls  in  luxury  where  the  trader 
and  the  Indian,  with  pack  or  deer  on  their  shoulders,  plodded 
with  moccasined  feet.  Nature  for  the  most  part  decreed  where 
paths  should  go  —  until  in  these  latter  days  engineering  some- 
times defies  nature. 

The  Indians  were  great  travelers.  Year  after  year  bands 
of  them  gathered  at  Montreal,  some  of  them  coming  from  the 


312  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

region  west  of  Lake  Superior  or  in  the  Mississippi  Valley.  As 
early  as  1677  Indians  from  the  Niagara  went  to  Albany  to 
meet  the  New  York  Commissioners  and  "  renew  the  chain  of 
friendship."  To  come  a  thousand  miles  with  furs  to  Fort  Ni- 
agara was  a  common  thing.  This  aptitude  for  great  journeys 
was  perhaps  but  a  survival  of  the  nomadic  habits  of  not  very 
remote  ancestors,  and  is  many  times  illustrated  by  the  Indian's 
habit  of  bringing  his  family  and  camping  for  weeks  in  the 
neighborhood  of  the  fort,  to  which  he  looked  for  sustenance. 

One  must  keep  in  mind  the  conditions  that  still  prevailed, 
even  in  the  old  settled  parts  of  the  country.  Wild  animals 
were  a  pest,  in  New  York  and  New  England,  long  after  the 
Indians  ceased  to  be  a  terror.  In  the  journal  of  the  New  York 
General  Assembly  are  numerous  Acts  offering  reward  for  the 
destruction  of  wolves  and  panthers  —  these  last  especially  in 
Dutchess  and  Orange  counties.  Even  in  Albany  County, 
wolves  and  wildcats  annoyed  the  settlements  until  long  after 
the  period  we  are  studying.  In  the  region  of  the  Lakes  and 
the  Niagara,  the  dangerous  or  obnoxious  animals  had  con- 
stantly to  be  guarded  against,  but  with  many  species  the  value 
of  their  pelt  made  their  presence  not  unwelcome.  Deer  and 
other  useful  game  abounded,  and  the  Niagara  gorge  was  fa- 
mous for  its  rattlesnakes. 

Western  New  York  was  full  of  trails,  a  network  of  foot- 
paths between  important  points ;  and  many  of  them  were  fa- 
miliar to  Chabert,  whose  life  was  largely  spent  in  coming  and 
going  through  the  forests.  Canoes  sometimes  served  him;  but 
the  records  contain  no  mention  of  the  use  of  horses,  until  the 
latter  part  of  our  story.  For  the  most  part,  he  traveled  on 
foot,  as  did  his  friends  the  Senecas. 

Emerging  from  the  forest  path,  pausing  at  the  door  of  the 
council  house,  he  found  first  of  all,  a  greeting,  for  he  was  an 
adoptive  member  of  the  tribe,  as  his  father  had  been  before 
him.  Seneca  friendship,  when  the  trust  is  once  given,  is 
staunch.  The  obligations  incurred  in  the  ceremony  of  adop- 
tion were  sacred  and  not  to  be  lightly  treated.  Living  as  he 
did,  for  long  periods,  year  after  year,  with  the  Senecas,  Cha- 
bert, however  certain  his  own  French  parentage,  had  a  Seneca 


SONS  OF  THE  ELDER  JONCAIRE  313 

family,  as  his  father  had.  The  records,  naturally  enough, 
are  silent  on  this  aspect  of  his  life,  but  Pouchot  knew  the  ways 
of  the  time.  It  was  the  rule,  rather  than  the  exception,  for  the 
French  traders  and  courcurs  de  bois  to  take  Indian  wives,  even 
as  Sir  William  Johnson  did  at  his  "  castle  "  on  the  Mohawk. 
When  Chabert  went  to  his  Senecas,  he  dwelt  in  intimacy, 
in  a  bark  cabin  among  the  trees  near  fresh  water,  by  some 
clear  stream  or  on  the  margin  of  one  of  Western  New  York's 
fair  lakes.  His  coming,  after  a  term  of  service  elsewhere,  or 
attendance  at  Montreal  or  Quebec,  was  none  the  less  welcome 
because  he  always  brought  a  store  of  presents.  More  and 
more  the  Seneca  came  to  rely  on  the  whites  —  either  French 
or  British,  as  best  served  —  for  the  necessities  of  life.  Grad- 
ually the  deerskin  garments  of  their  own  make,  trimmed  with 
dyed  porcupine  quills,  gave  way  to  the  blankets  and  broad- 
cloths, the  beads  and  galloon  which  came  out  of  the  stores 
at  Niagara  and  Oswego.  Grease  and  vermilion,  beads,  silver 
bracelets,  knives,  mirrors,  tomahawks,  powder  and  flints,  guns, 
flour  and  liquor,  came  from  the  same  source,  and  through  the 
generous  and  friendly  hands  of  Chabert.  Sometimes  he 
brought  a  smith  with  him,  who  set  up  his  forge  in  the  forest, 
repaired  the  guns  and  supplied  the  iron  work  which  the  Seneca 
could  not  make  for  himself. 

The  routine  of  life  in  a  Seneca  village  was  by  no  means  mo- 
notonous. It  varied  with  the  seasons,  but  there  was  always 
much  for  the  women  to  do.  They  planted,  hoed  and  gathered 
the  crops.  When  the  hunter  returned  with  game,  the  women 
prepared  it.  There  were  removals,  for  weeks  at  a  time,  to 
favorable  fishing  places  ;  and  the  Seneca  village  of  the  Little 
Rapid  —  or  as  it  sometimes  is  written,  the  Little  Seneca  Rapid 
—  meaning  a  Seneca  settlement  at  the  outlet  of  Lake  Erie, 
where  is  now  the  city  of  Buffalo  —  was  such  a  temporary  lodg- 
ment of  a  band  whose  other  home  was  on  the  banks  of  the 
Genesec  or  the  shore  of  Seneca  Lake.  In  early  spring,  when 
the  sap  began  to  flow,  the  making  of  maple  sugar  engrossed 
the  village,  perhaps  taking  the  people  miles  from  home.  More 
exciting  yet  were  the  raids  on  the  pigeon  roosts,  when  thou- 
sands of  birds  were'  slaughtered. 


314  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

These  were  some  of  the  avocations  of  peace.  The  hunting 
season  occupied  the  men.  There  was  much  leisure  for  the 
playing  of  games,  gambling,  the  telling  of  tales,  and  for  danc- 
ing. The  Iroquois  dances  were  an  elaborate  evolution,  and 
some  of  them,  combining  song  and  recitative,  fitted  every  mood ; 
now  medium  of  devotion  and  thanksgiving,  again  serving  as  a 
stimulus  to  passion,  preliminary  to  the  warpath. 

With  all  these  aspects  of  Seneca  village  life,  and  many  more, 
Chabert  was  as  familiar  as  with  the  streets  of  the  little  French 
town  of  Montreal,  or  the  steep  highways  and  official  quarters 
of  Quebec.  In  after  years,  when  a  prisoner  in  the  Bastille,  he 
wrote  his  memoirs,  recalling  his  youth  in  the  forests  of  West- 
ern New  York. 

My  father,  [he  says]  prisoner  of  war  with  the  Iroquois,  had  the 
good  fortune  of  escaping  the  flames  through  the  protection  of  an 
Indian  woman  who  adopted  him.  This  privilege,  hereditary  with 
these  people,  made  us  pass,  my  brothers  and  I,  as  children  of  the 
nation.  This  adoption  caused  us  to  be  chosen  by  the  Baron  de 
Longueuil,  then  Commander-General  of  Canada,  to  be  sent  as 
hostages  among  the  Five  Iroquois  nations.  ...  I  lived,  then,  with 
them  and  with  several  other  neighboring  tribes  (Ottawas,  Chippe- 
was,  Shawanese),12  from  1725  to  1735.  Thus  I  have  had  the  honor 
of  using  well  for  the  service  of  my  King  several  years  which  in  ordi- 
nary service  slide  away  in  pure  loss  to  the  country.  This  military 
and  Indian  education  was  little  likely  to  fit  me  for  the  shady  schemes 
of  fraudulent  finance. 

That  even  at  this  early  period  in  his  career  Chabert  had 
won  the  approval  and  confidence  of  the  highest  officials  in 
Canada,  is  indicated  by  a  letter  from  the  Intendant,  Hocquart, 
to  the  Minister,  October  25,  1734,  in  which  we  read: 

Pardon  the  liberty  I  take,  Monseigneur,  in  writing  to  you  in  favor 
of  a  young  cadet  of  the  troops,  who  is  both  prudent  and  full  of  zeal 
for  the  service  —  the  Sieur  Chabert  Joncaire,  the  younger  son  of 
the  Sr.  Joncaire,  lieutenant  and  Iroquois  interpreter.  This  young 
man,  who  is  21  or  22  years  of  age,  is  full  of  honor  and  [good]  feel- 
ings, and  is  always  ready  to  proceed  as  soon  as  any  duty  is  in  ques- 
tion. Last  winter  lie  made  a  journey  on  snowshoes  as  far  as  Ni- 

i- Chabert  gives  them  as:  "  Outaouacs,  Sauteu.r,  Chaonasnons." 


SONS  OF  THE  ELDER  JONCAIRE  315 

agara  and  returned  by  the  country  of  the  Iroquois,  whose  language 
he  understands  perfeetly.  He  is  now  in  the  expedition  under  the 
command  of  M.  Desnoyelles,  and  I  am  sure  he  will  distinguish  him- 
self if  there  is  an  opportunity  to  do  so.  I  could  not,  Monseigneur, 
say  too  much  in  his  favor.  He  deserves  to  be  promoted.  The 
Marquis  de  Beauharnois,  who  values  him,  will  bear  quite  as  favor- 
able testimony  about  him. 

The  many  words  of  praise  for  him,  found  in  official  reports, 
clearly  show  that  he  was  a  young  man  of  exceptional  force  of 
character  and  devotion  to  the  service,  and  largely  endorse  his 
own  estimate  of  his  achievements. 

The  reader  may  be  reminded  that  the  memoir  from  which  we 
draw  these  details  of  Chabert's  service  was  written  to  win  royal 
favor.  No  opportunity  is  lost  in  it  to  assert  his  honesty  and 
uprightness.  It  must  be  conceded,  that  Chabcrt  and  his  law- 
yers made  a  very  strong  case  of  it ;  but  for  the  present  we 
pass  over  that  phase  of  the  story,  seeking  merely  to  show  what 
were  his  employments  during  the  years  now  under  study. 

My  brother  [Captain  Joncaire]  having  been  assigned  to  the  chiefs 
of  the  P'ive  Nations  by  the  Governor  in  1735,  I  found  myself  alone 
among  these  peoples.  I  learned  that  the  English,  in  order  to  avenge 
some  particular  wrong,  were  getting  ready  to  fall  upon  our  villages. 
I  was  18  years  old  13  and  I  had  to  be  my  own  adviser.  I  saw  noth- 
ing better  to  do  than  to  make  alliance  14  with  the  Indians,  to  get  the 
start  of  the  enemy.  Discovered  and  forestalled,  the  English  made 
overtures;  they  were  listened  to;  peace  was  concluded. 

Chabert  was  convinced  that  the  English,  could  they  have 
taken  him  at  this  time,  "  would  have  done  me  a  bad  turn  " ;  but, 
he  adds,  "  this  was  only  a  feeble  prelude  of  dangers  without 
number  which  I  have  since  run,  in  laboring  without  relaxation 
among  so  many  barbarous  nations  for  the  good  of  the  Colony." 
He  continues : 

In  1736  I  was  ordered  to  go  among  the  Five  Nations,  to  the  Fort 
of  Niagara,  there  to  await  the  chiefs  from  the  nations  of  the  Sault 

is  This  date  agrees  with   Taniruay   (Til,  x?8:i),  but  not  with  the   Detroit 
records,  which  pive  Daniel's  birth  as  in  171k 
i+ Does  this  mean  marriage? 


316  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

S.  Louis  and  from  the  Lake  of  the  Two  Mountains,  and  to  escort 
them  to  the  Missisagues,  in  order  to  make  a  good  peace  between  these 
allies  of  France.  The  negotiation  succeeded;  I  returned  to  the  fort, 
from  which  I  repaired  twice  to  the  Five  Nations,  in  order  to  keep 
them  always  peaceably  disposed. 

The  tribes  on  the  Ohio  were  suspected  of  being  prevailed  upon  by 
the  English  to  stir  up  the  neighboring  nations  against  the  French. 
The  suspicion  was  well  founded.  I  was  sent  there  in  company  with 
chiefs  of  the  Five  Nations.  I  broke  up  the  conspiracy,  and  re- 
mained all  summer  [1737]  in  that  country,  from  which  I  came  back 
to  winter,  partly  at  the  Fort,  partly  among  the  Five  Nations. 

In  the  spring  [1738]  I  was  again  charged  with  visiting  different 
villages,  in  order  to  keep  informed  on  what  happened,  and  to  as- 
semble the  councils,  of  which  I  sent  a  report  to  the  Governor. 

As  a  general  thing,  when  I  was  not  on  some  military  expedition, 
my  ordinary  employment,  winter  and  summer,  without  let  up,  was 
to  travel  over  this  vast  continent;  in  summer  by  canoe,15  in  winter 
on  foot,  across  the  ice  and  snow;  to  cultivate  friendship,  check  im- 
prudence, dispel  plots,  or  break  off  the  treaties  of  these  people  with 
the  enemy.  Also  may  I  add  that  there  is  no  warrior  in  his  Majes- 
ty's service  who  has  known  less  than  I  the  [comforts  of]  winter 
quarters.  I  do  not  say  in  time  of  war  (that  would  be  all  the  year 
in  this  country),  but  even  in  time  of  peace;  for  these  perpetual  ne- 
gotiations offer  dangers  as  manifold  and  more  formidable  than  those 
of  battle,  for  they  are  concealed  under  the  false  appearance  of 
peace  1G  and  of  friendship;  and  that  it  may  not  be  thought  that  the 
allurement  of  profit  led  me  to  engage  in  enterprises  so  perilous,  it  is 
well  to  remark  that  I  was  only  fed  by  the  King  [when]  in  the  French 
posts.  When  I  set  out,  they  gave  me  provisions  for  ten  days,  such 
as  would  be  given  to  a  soldier  in  France.  The  rest  of  the  journey, 
and  my  stay  in  the  villages,  was  entirely  at  my  own  expense. 

I  had  thus  made  more  than  forty  journeys,  up  to  1738,  without 

i5  Chahcrt  adds  this  note:  "As  these  rivers  are  often  dry  in  several 
places,  one  has  to  transport  overland  the  provisions  and  goods  to  a  place 
more  navigable,  with  what  excess  of  fatigue  in  a  country  where  the  heat 
as  well  as  the  cold  are  much  more  than  here.  In  winter,  one  absolutely 
must  walk  with  snowshoes,  which,  by  compressing  a  larger  surface  of  snow 
prevents  one  from  sinking;  this  foot-gear  doubles  the  fatigue." 

ir<"  When  the  Indiana  break  with  any  one  they  have  no  other  way  of  show- 
ing it  than  by  the  tomahawk  and  the  gun;  if  one  conies  among  them  under 
these  circumstances,  a  deputy  is  no  more  than  an  enemy  in  their  eyes." — 
Note  in  original. 


SONS  OF  THE  ELDER  JONCAIKE  317 

receiving  any  recompense,  and  indeed,  for  a  still  longer  time,  without 
being  promoted. 

After  having  wintered,  as  I  have  said,  as  much  at  Niagara  as 
with  the  Five  Nations,  I  was  ordered  to  set  out  for  Fort  la  Reine.17 
It  was  said  that  the  English  thought  of  making  an  establishment  in 
the  neighborhood.  I  perceived  the  falsity  of  this  report.  I  there- 
upon descended  the  Ohio  with  the  troops  commanded  by  M.  de 
Longueuil.  We  entered  Louisiana,  and  I  was  deputed,  along  with 
the  chiefs  who  accompanied  us,  to  treat  with  the  Illinois,  whose 
warriors  I  led  to  the  general  meeting-place,  which  was  at  Fort 
de  1'AssoLuptioii.18 

Chabcrt  continues  with  some  account  of  the  campaign.  The 
war  waged  by  the  Frencli  in  1739-40  against  the  Chicasaws  in 
what  is  now  Western  Tennessee  is  obviously  a  theme  remote 
from  our  subject;  but  it  was  the  occasion  of  an  expedition 
through  Lake  Ontario,  the  Niagara,  and  Lake  Chautauqua, 
which  appears  to  have  escaped  the  notice  of  those  who  have 
written  of  the  region.  Chabcrt's  own  memoir  and  other  cor- 
roborative documents,  establish  the  fact  that  white  men  were 
on  Lake  Chautauqua  ten  years  before  the  expedition  led  by 
Celoron,  which  has  been  regarded  as  the  original  exploration 
of  that  region. 

From  the  16th  to  the  30th  June,  1739,  442  men  left  Mont- 
real under  command  of  the  Baron  de  Longueuil,  Major  of 
Montreal,  to  go  to  serve  under  Bienville  of  Louisiana,  in  his 
campaign  against  the  Chicasaws.  That  this  Canadian  force 
passed  through  Lake  Ontario,  up  the  Niagara,  along  the  south 
shore  of  Lake  Eric,  and  through  Chautauqua  Lake  into  the 
Ohio,  is  proved  by  existing  documents. 

Among  the  officers  who  accompanied  de  Longueuil  in  1739, 
were  several  whose  early  military  training  had  been  had  in  the 
organization  known  as  the  Company  of  Gentlemen  Cadets  of  the 
Colonies  —  La  Compagnie  dcs  Cadet  s-Gentilhommes  dcs 
Colonies.  It  was  created  under  the  War  Department  of 

i"  Fort  Lorraine. 

i*  Xear  the  mouth  of  the  Marpot  or  Wolf  River,  Tennessee,  according  to 
Monette.  ("  Valley  of  the  Mississippi,"  T,  -290.)  Bancroft  locates  it  on  the 
bluff  of  Memphis.  ("  I'nited  States,"  III,  :5f>:5.)  Louisiana,  as  the  name 
was  used  in  tho.se  days,  was  virtually  the  Valley  of  the  Mississippi. 


318  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

France  in  1730,  to  provide  under-officers  suitably  trained  for 
service  in  India  and  America.  The  cadets  appear  to  have 
been  drawn  from  families  of  good  social  standing,  their  mili- 
tary training  was  thorough  and  judicious,  and  the  Company 
not  only  gained  a  high  repute  for  the  efficiency  of  the  young 
men  it  supplied  for  colonial  service,  but  it  also,  and  naturally 
enough,  developed  something  of  zealous  pride  and  exclusive- 
ness  —  a  true  esprit  de  corps.  In  the  earlier  years  of  the 
existence  of  this  Company,  the  number  of  gentleman-cadets 
maintained  in  the  establishment  was  50 ;  later  it  was  reduced 
to  30.  From  1730  to  1781,  the  Company  furnished  72  officers 
for  infantry  and  artillery  regiments  in  colonial  service.  From 
them  were  appointed  ensigns  for  the  infantry  regiments,  cor- 
porals, sergeants,  and  anspessades.  In  1781,  apparently  for 
reasons  of  economy,  the  Company  of  Gentlemen-Cadets  was 
consolidated  in  an  "  auxiliary  battalion,"  which  proved,  ac- 
cording to  one  seemingly  well-informed  critic,19  against  the 
good  of  the  service. 

There  is  a  list  of  28  cadets  appointed  by  the  Court  in  1731, 
signed  at  Quebec  by  Beauharnois,  whose  pay  in  the  same  serv- 
ice began  January  1,  1732.  In  it  appear  the  names  of  De 
Lignery,  Portneuf  the  elder,  Contrecoeur,  Chabcrt  and  Beles- 
tre,  all  of  whom  figure  in  our  story.  Another  list  (cadets  a  V 
eguillette},  1739-42,  briefly  characterizes  the  officers,  many 
of  whom  were  to  become  history-makers,  during  the  next  two 
decades,  in  the  region  here  under  study. 

Of  Duplessis  Fabert  it  is  noted:  "  Of  little  capacity."  De 
la  Chauvignerie  is  vouched  for  as  "  good  officer,  zealous  for 
the  service,  an  Iroquois  interpreter."  De  Lery,  "  good  officer." 
Chevalier  de  Repentigny,  "  of  esprit,  still  young  but  promis- 
ing." De  Belestre,  "  good  officer,  zealous  for  the  service." 
Celoron,  "  young  man,  discreet  and  very  promising  " —  an  in- 
teresting note  in  view  of  his  prominent  part  in  the  region  a 
few  years  later. 

The  following  are  named  as  having  served  against  the  Chica- 

"  Author  of  an  unsigned  inemoir  on  the  Company  of  Gentleman  Cadets, 
in  the  Paris  Archives;  a  copy  at  Ottawa. 


SONS  OF  THE  ELDER  JONCAIRE  319 

saws,  which  implies  that  they  shared  in  the  expedition  through 
the  Niagara  and  Chautauqua  Lake  in  1739: 

Ilertel  de  la  Fresniere;  Ilertel  de  Ueaubassin ;  Langly  the 
elder  —  of  whom  it  is  noted:  "Zealous  in  the  service;  was 
sent  with  the  detachment  against  the  Chicasaws,  but  was  obliged 
to  remain  at  Niagara  because  of  an  accident;  impossible  to 
speak  too  well  of  him."  Langly  de  Fontenclle;  Rigauville 
("  promising  youth  ") ;  Marin  ("  zealous,  capable  and  of  good 
conduct,"  etc.);  Joncaire  de  Clauzonne  ("interpreter  at  Ni- 
agara, zealous,"  etc.);  Joncaire  Leguay  -'"  ("detached  to  the 
Senecas,  zealous  and  exemplary,  he  was  in  the  Chicasaw  cam- 
paign ")  ;  and  several  others,  of  less  importance  in  our  annals. 

Still  another  document  21  shows  that  among  the  officers  of 
the  expedition  were  Lieutenants  de  Sabrevois,  de  Vassan,  and 
Le  Gardeur  de  St.  Pierre;  Portneuf,  who  ranked  as  second  en- 
sign; and  de  Ligncry,  ensign  and  major  of  the  detachment. 
It  names  four  cadets:  Michel  Ilertel  de  Rouville,  Chaussegros 
de  Lery,  Joncaire  de  Closonne,  and  La  Gai  [Le  Guay]  de  Jon- 
caire. 

A  Recollect  priest,  Father  Vcrnct,  was  attendant  chaplain  ; 
and  the  expedition  was  accompanied,  at  least  to  Lake  Erie,  by 
the  Jesuit  missionary  La  Bretonniere,  "  of  the  Iroquois  of  the 
Sault,"  and  by  M.  Queret,  an  ecclesiastic  from  the  mission  of 
the  Lake  of  the  Two  Mountains.  There  was  also  a  surgeon, 
whose  name  is  not  given. 

With  24  soldiers  — "  one  drummer  "  being  especially  men- 
tioned —  45  Canadian  habitants  to  manage  the  canoes,  and  319 
savages,  de  Longucuil  and  his  staff,  in  the  early  summer  of 
1739,  arrived  at  Fort  Niagara,  made  the  long  portage  and 
skirted  the  Lake  Erie  shore  to  the  westward.  Many  a  traveler 
to-day  notes  with  pleasure  the  gradual  rise  of  those  Chautau- 
qua hills,  rich  with  grain  fields,  orchards  and  vineyards;  but 
to  the  men  who  marched  with  de  Longueuil  they  could  have 
meant  little  save  toil  and  danger.  Just  what  their  route  was, 

20  "  Le  Guay"  was  the  mother's  family  name.     Only  in  this  instance  have 
I   found   it   used    for  one  of   the   sons, 
-i  Paris  archives;  copy  at  Ottawa. 


320  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

from  Lake  Eric,  cannot  be  stated;  but  that  it  approximated 
the  route  of  Celoron  in  1749,  is  probable.  De  Lery's  journal 
of  1754  indicates  a  point  on  Lake  Chautauqua  "  where  our 
camp  was  in  1739  " —  proof  that  the  expedition  passed  that 
way.22 

On  this  expedition  Chabert  had  hard  experiences.  Of  one 
episode  he  records:  "We  had  18  days  of  marching  and  pro- 
visions for  six  days.  Moreover,  charged  to  observe  and  not 
to  fight,  we  could  not  even  fire  a  musket.  When  our  provisions 
were  consumed  we  lived  on  acorns  roasted  in  hot  ashes." 

A  little  later  in  this  year,  he  says,  "  I  again  set  out  with  a 
war  party.  .  .  .  We  brought  back  several  prisoners  to  the 
fort."  In  1740  his  service  was  largely  among  the  Chicasaws 
-  full  of  incident  and  adventure  but  not  essential  for  the  pres- 
ent narrative.  "  I  served  as  interpreter,"  he  says ;  "  an  un- 
derstanding was  reached,  and  I  led  the  chiefs  of  the  Tehicachas 
(Chicasaws)  to  the  Fort  de  1'Assomption,  there  to  ratify  the 
treaty ;  after  which  the  Governor  sent  me  back  to  Niagara ; 
whence  I  had  to  go,  all  winter  long,  from  village  to  village,  with 
as  much  of  risk  as  of  fatigue,  to  hold  or  regain  several  nations 
which  the  English  had  drawn  to  their  side."  Chabert  con- 
tinues : 

The  necessity  of  treating  with  these  and  several  other  nations 
which  came  to  Niagara  for  all  sorts  of  provisions  in  the  good  sea- 
son, kept  me  there  nearly  all  summer  [1741].  When  I  had  ne- 
gotiated with  them,  I  resumed  my  ordinary  journeys.  Again,  orders 
carried  me  among  the  Five  Nations  to  make  ratification  of  neutrality 
[1742]  and  to  engage  them  to  defend  Forts  Frontenac  and  Niagara, 
built  on  their  lands,  and  which  served  as  entrepot  for  the  trade  which 
we  were  making  with  them;  but  they  demanded  on  their  side  that 
Oswego,  an  English  fort,  should  be  spared,  in  the  preservation  of 

22  The  Rev.  Jacques  Quintin  de  la  Bretonniere,  who  passed  through  the 
Niagara  and  adjacent  lakes  with  de  Longueuil  in  1739,  had  come  to  Canada 
in  1721  or  earlier.  He  spent  most  of  his  life  at  the  Sault  St.  Louis  mission, 
not  far  from  Montreal.  The  Jesuit,  Nau,  wrote,  Oct.  2,  1739:  "Father 
de  la  Bretonniere  accompanied  the  300  Iroquois  from  our  village  who  take 
part  in  the  war."  A  year  later  he  wrote:  "Father  de  la  Bretonniere, 
who  followed  our  savages  .  .  .  went  back  to  France  by  way  of  the  Missis- 
sippi." What  a  meager  record  of  a  great  adventure!  Of  the  missionary 
Queret,  who  went  with  him,  1  find  no  record. 


LAC     ONTARI 


— . ,, 

^S^%    T1 


1'urtiuii   uf    lu-liiu'-    Map   ui     1 7  (•."), 


SONS  OF  THE  KLDER  JONCAIUE  321 

which  they  had  the  same  interest ;  this  could  not  be  refused  to  them, 
since  the  salvation  of  the  colony  depended  on  the  tranquility  of  these 
savages,  the  most  redoubtable  warriors  in  all  Canada. 

This  affair  ended,  I  asked  permission  to  join  the  King's  troops; 
but  the  Governor  wrote  to  me  that  the  most  brilliant  exploits  did  not 
by  any  means  equal  the  services  which  I  rendered  in  a  single  day,  in 
keeping  the  Five  Nations  pacifically  disposed;  that  moreover  he  had 
no  one  who  would  be  able  to  replace  me  among  these  peoples.  So  I 
continued,  by  his  orders,  to  hold  them  in  the  way  of  duty.  The  good 
of  the  service  called  me  three  more  times  this  year  to  Oswego,  not  to 
take  them  by  surprise  (this  fort  being  comprised  in  the  neutrality), 
but  to  keep  an  eye  on  the  English,  and  discover  if  they  were  making 
any  preparations  against  Niagara. 

The  second  expedition  of  white  men  to  the  Ohio  by  way  of 
the  Niagara  and  Chautauqua  route  was  in  1743.  Reporting 
on  the  events  of  that  year  to  the  Minister,  Maurepas,  Beau- 
harnois  wrote  from  Quebec,  October  13th,  that  he  had  in- 
structed Joncaire  to  inform  the  Senccas  of  the  proposed  re- 
moval of  the  Shawanese,  and  adds :  "  I  have,  besides,  en- 
joincd  on  Sicur  la  Saussaye,  who  went  up  this  summer  to 
where  they  are  collected  together,  not  to  neglect  anything  in 
regard  to  this  migration,"  etc.  No  detailed  account  is  found 
of  La  Saussaye's  embassy;  but  when,  in  1749,  Celoron  led 
his  expedition  by  the  Chautauqua  portage  to  the  Ohio,  La 
Saussaye  went  with  him.  "  The  portage,"  wrote  Celoron  in 
his  journal,  speaking  specifically  of  the  path  below  the  lake 
used  because  the  water  in  the  Outlet  was  low,  "  was  shown  to 
me  by  the  Sieur  de  La  Saussaye,"  who  had  passed  that  way  six 
years  before. 

It  was  in  1743  that  Chabert  "  got  wind,"  as  he  says,  of  a 
serious  plot  against  the  French,  involving  Niagara  and  other 
posts.  His  account  of  it  is  too  prolix  for  our  present  purpose. 
The  Sautcux,  in  British  interest,  were  active  among  all  the 
tribes  on  the  Ohio  and  even  on  the  Illinois.  According  to  Cha- 
bert, there  was  formed  a  far-reaching  league  against  the 
French,  achieved  and  cemented  by  English  wampum-belts,  '•  to 
induce  them  "  —  the  tribes  — "  to  lav  violent  hands  on  all  the 
French  scattered  about  in  the  different  posts  of  this  country. 


322  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

I  made  haste  to  give  notice  to  the  commandant  at  Niagara. 
From  there,  setting  out  with  four  savages  of  the  Five  Na- 
tions, I  was  so  expeditious  that  in  five  days  I  came  up  to  the 
English  agents,  and  ordered  them  to  give  the  belts  back  to 
me.  Fear  made  them  docile.  I  sent  them  to  the  Governor 
(M.  de  Beauharnois)  from  whom  I  received  as  my  only  re- 
ward, great  praise,  with  promise  to  make  the  most  at  Court 
of  so  essential  a  service.  I  doubt,"  Chabert  caustically  adds, 
"  if  he  kept  his  word,  for  while  he  governed  I  received  no  pro- 
motion at  all,  nor  other  recompense  for  my  labors,  except  the 
order  to  go  through  them  all  over  again  —  a  service  as  costly 
as  it  wTas  barren  for  me." 

His  service  in  the  year  or  so  following  was  of  the  same  char- 
acter as  already  indicated,  save  that  he  was  employed  more  in 
what  is  now  New  York  State.  "  I  continued  to  go  and  come, 
sometimes  at  the  fort  [Niagara],  sometimes  in  the  villages, 
sparing  neither  care  nor  attentions,  efforts,  blandishments, 
presents,  to  offset  the  advantage  which  their  offers  and  their 
liberality  tended  to  gain  for  the  English."  He  complains  that 
in  the  Indian  villages  there  were  always  "  busybodies  "  who 
on  occasion  were  ready  to  murder,  "  which  put  me  constantly 
in  danger  of  being  killed."  Not  even  his  relationship  to  the 
Senecas  guaranteed  him  safety  among  other  tribes  where  Eng- 
lish influence  was  strong.  And  he  came  to  be  very  much  hated, 
and  hunted,  by  the  English.  "  Constantly,"  he  writes,  "  when 
the  English  were  at  war  with  us,  they  did  my  brother  and  my- 
self the  honor  of  putting  a  price  on  our  heads,  testimony  — 
as  glorious  as  it  was  little  intended  —  of  the  respect  and  fear 
which  our  influence  and  our  talent  for  controling  the  savage 
mind,  inspired  in  them." 

It  was  at  this  period  —  Chabert  does  not  give  the  date,  but 
it  was  prior  to  174-7  —  that  the  Senecas  brought  word  to  Fort 
Niagara  that  the  English,  from  Oswego,  were  planning  an  at- 
tack. As  soon  as  messages  could  be  sent,  Quebec  was  apprised. 
Word  came  back  that  Chabert  should  go  to  Oswego,  to  spy  on 
the  English.  "  I  interrupted  my  negotiations  with  the  na- 
tives," says  the  memoir,  "  to  make  three  journeys  to  Oswego, 
to  discover  the  purpose  of  the  English,  on  Avhose  part  an  ex- 


SONS  OF  THE  ELDER  JONCAIKE  323 

pcclition  against  Niagara  was  always  feared.  Indeed  they 
were  again  making  plans  to  possess  themselves  of  this  place." 
The  plot  included  an  attack  on  Niagara  and  a  massacre  of  all 
the  French  by  the  Sauteux  and  other  western  tribes  supposed 
to  have  been  brought  under  English  influence.  Chabcrt  learned 
of  it  all  from  friendly  Senecas  while  absent  from  Fort  Niagara. 
"  On  this  information,"  he  writes,  "  having  taken  with  me 
twenty  Iroquois,  I  hastened  to  notify  the  commandant  of  that 
place,  that  he  might  keep  the  soldiers  from  going  out.  I  next 
went  with  a  reinforcement  of  15  Frenchmen  from  the  garrison 
to  overtake  the  Sauteux  deputed  for  the  English.  I  caught  up 
with  them  in  the  second  day's  march,  took  them  by  surprise, 
and  carried  them  all  prisoners  to  the  fort.  They  confessed 
the  plot,  after  two  days  in  prison.  In  order  to  manage  their 
people  carefully,  they  were  set  free,  on  their  promise  that  they 
would  turn  against  the  English  who  had  won  them  over.  In 
fact,  they  killed  several  of  them."  The  most  exacting  French- 
man could  hardly  have  demanded  a  more  striking  proof  of  good 
faith. 

The  3'ear  1747  brought  to  Fort  Niagara  new  alarms,  and  in 
new  guise.  Now  the  cry  was  that  the  British  had  enlisted  the 
Hurons  and  the  Illinois  with  other  tribes  cast  and  west,  in  a 
new  plot  to  massacre  the  French.  Here  is  Chabcrt's  account 
of  it: 

The  full  moon  of  May  was  the  day  set  for  the  general  uprising. 
Some  chiefs  of  the  Five  Nations,  bought  up  with  money,  were  the 
principal  agents  in  this  plot.  On  the  other  hand.  Fort  Niagara  was 
to  be  surprised  by  the  Loups  cles  Montagues,  whose  chief  with  a 
number  of  his  warriors  would  ask  for  an  audience  with  the  com- 
mandant of  the  fort,  massacre  him  with  his  officers  even  in  the  coun- 
cil, slaughter  the  garrison  and  burn  the  place. 

The  stroke  was  well  planned  and  might  have  succeeded,  but  that 
an  Indian  woman,  one  of  those  called  dames  de  conseil  (since  they 
have  a  voice  in  the  councils,  and  know  all  the  secrets  of  the  tribe) 
revealed  to  me  all  the  mystery  of  this  conspiracy. 

I  went  at  once  to  the  commandant  at  Niagara,  and  to  the  com- 
mandants of  the  other  French  posts,  equally  menaced;  thence,  with- 
out loss  of  time  I  quickly  followed  the  savages  sent  by  the  English. 


324  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

I  found  them  in  the  woods  after  a  march  of  fifty  leagues.  I  bitterly 
reproached  them  for  their  treachery.  They  handed  over  to  me,  with 
a  good  grace,  the  English  wampum  belts,  and  assured  me  that  they 
had  undertaken  the  affair  with  regret  because  they  saw  that  I  would 
be  included  in  the  general  massacre  of  the  French. 

I  brought  them  back  to  Fort  Niagara  where  they  were  well  treated. 
M.  de  la  Galissoniere  gave  me  thanks  proportioned  to  the  magni- 
tude of  the  service  which  I  had  rendered  to  the  colony  in  delivering 
it  from  one  of  the  greatest  dangers  it  had  ever  run. 

The  following  year  [1748],  Chabert's  services  were  recog- 
nized by  a  promotion  at  the  hands  of  Government ;  he  was  com- 
missioned "  Commander  of  the  Five  Nations."  In  later  and  un- 
happy years,  when  the  impoverished  and  imprisoned  veteran 
was  suing  for  clemency  and  justice,  he  could  not  refrain,  in 
speaking  of  this  promotion,  from  observing  that  it  was  "  a 
mark  of  esteem  and  satisfaction  for  which  I  paid  dear,  al- 
though I  had  in  fact  already  bought  it."  He  continues: 

We  were  holding  these  people  [the  Iroquois]  only  through  their 
self-interest.  With  empty  hands  I  would  have  lost  all  the  credit  and 
merit  of  my  adoption;  they  were  not  however  filled  with  the  King's 
goods ;  my  own  supplied  them.  .  .  . 

One  day,  as  I  was  holding  a  great  council  to  hear  a  message  from 
the  Governor-general,  four  savages  bought  up  by  the  English  en- 
tered the  hall  (or  cabin)  of  the  council,  and  approaching  me  as  if 
to  hear  me  better,  one  of  them  struck  me  with  his  dagger,  and 
wounded  me. 

As  he  bent  his  head  I  swung  on  him,  instantly,  a  heavy  blow  of  my 
tomahawk,  and  laid  him  at  my  feet. 

His  three  accomplices  rushed  up  as  if  to  pounce  upon  me,  but  the 
other  warriors  drove  them  out  of  the  place,  and  compelled  them  the 
next  day  to  beg  my  pardon.  With  this  J  had  to  be  content.  If 
these  conspirators  had  been  in  larger  number,  I  should  have  been 
lost.  Behold  to  what  a  chief  without  a  following  finds  himself  ex- 
posed !  At  the  mercy  of  the  whims  of  these  American  barbarians, 
he  must  be  prodigal  of  his  goods  and  of  his  life,  happy  indeed  if  his 
obscure  but  useful  services  do  not  remain  swallowed  up  in  these  vast 
wildernesses. 

Chabert's  statements  regarding  his  varied  services  are  well 
borne  out  by  numerous  documents,  botli  French  and  English. 


SONS  OF  THE  ELDER  JOXCAIRE  325 

A  few  citations  from  them  will  not  only  shed  some  further  light 
on  the  service  in  which  the  brothers  Joncaire  were  engaged, 
but  will  also  show  how  difficult  it  is  to  determine,  oftentimes, 
which  of  the  two  is  designated,  each  of  them  being  called  (in 
various  spellings)  the  Sieur  de  .Joncaire. 

The  employment  of  Philippe  de  Joncaire  among  the  Iroquois 
began,  as  we  have  noted,  several  years  before  his  father's  death 
in  1739.  In  1735  he  was  "  assigned  "  to  the  chiefs  of  the  Five 
Nations.  From  1738  he  and  his  brother  had  to  confront  a 
greater  adversary  than  their  father  had  known,  for  in  that 
year  William  Johnson  came  among  the  Mohawks  in  English 
interest;  was  soon  adopted  into  their  tribe,  made  domestic  al- 
liances and  long  sustained  as  intimate  and  influential  a  place 
among  them  as  the  Joncaires  did  among  the  Scnecas,  besides 
having  a  far  more  absolute  authority  in  his  official  capacity. 

In  an  address  to  the  Scnecas,  July  31,  1742,  Bcauharnois 
said:  "I  still  leave  you  masters  of  your  son,  Joncaire,  who 
came  down  with  you.  I  send  his  brother  with  you  to  learn 
your  language;  you  will  not  hold  any  councils  except  in  the 
presence  of  the  one  or  the  other,  so  that  I  may  be  informed  of 
what  passes  among  you."  The  speech  was  followed  by  the 
gift  of  presents,  "  which,"  said  the  Governor,  "  I  have  in- 
structed m}r  son  to  distribute  for  me." 

In  April,  174-4,  the  French  Governor  went  up  to  Montreal 
to  meet  delegations  from  the  tribes.  On  the  20th  of  that 
month  he  wrote  to  the  Minister:  "I  have  just  this  moment 
received  a  letter  from  Sieur  de  Joncaire,  who  is  at  the  Seneca 
village,  whcreunto  he  annexes  the  message  of  the  English  sent 
to  each  of  the  villages  of  the  Five  Iroquois  Nations."  This 
message,  which  was  said  to  have  been  sent  throughout  New 
York  State  the  preceding  December,  with  strings  of  wampum 
to  command  attention,  was  somewhat  startling.  "  Brethren," 
it  said,  "  I  give  you  notice  that  Menade  [New  York]  has  been 
attacked,  and  that  so  manv  men  have  been  killed  on  both  sides, 
that  nothing  but  blood  is  to  be  seen  all  around.  I  know  not 
as  yet  what  nation  is  attacking  us;  therefore,  brethren,  make 
haste  and  send  one  man  from  each  village  to  Choueghen  (Os- 
wcgo)  for  the  defense  of  the  fort  there,  and  you  will  go  on  the 


326  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

scout  as  far  as  Fort  Frontenac."  This  and  more  seemed  to 
Beauharnois  so  important  that  his  letter  conveying  it  to  Maure- 
pas  was  written,  save  for  a  few  words,  in  cypher.23  "  One 
thing  is  certain,"  the  Governor  added :  "  according  to  what 
Sieur  de  Joncaire  has  written  to  me,  that  one  Indian  from 
each  nation,  except  the  Senecas,  has  remained  at  Choueguen 
since  the  close  of  December." 

Another  letter  of  the  same  year  reports  the  desire  of  the 
Senecas  to  have  the  "  Sieur  de  Joncaire  "  return  to  them,  he 
having  gone  down  to  Montreal.  In  October  a  chief  from  the 
Sault  St.  Louis  reports  at  Montreal  that  the  Five  Nations 
were  under  arms  and  that  they  were  saying,  "  they  saw  clearly 
their  Father  was  angry  with  them,  since  he  did  not  send  back 
their  son  Joncaire,  as  that  alone  could  tranquilize  them " ; 
and  he  added  that  "  a  Mohawk  squaw,  his  relative,  had  told  him, 
should  Nitachinon  (that  is,  Sieur  de  Joncaire)  return  to  the 
Senecas,  all  will  be  changed,  and  we  shall  be  satisfied."  And 
in  the  summer  of  1745,  when  the  Senecas  heard  that  Joncaire 
was  to  be  stationed  elsewhere  they  begged  of  the  Governor  in 
characteristic  language,  that  he  might  remain  with  them: 

"  Father,  we  have  a  child  who  heeds  us  not ;  he  never  ceases 
threatening  us  that  he  will  leave  our  country;  with  that  in- 
tention he  has  pulled  down  his  house.  Father,  we  pray  that 
you  reprimand  him.  When  he  is  among  us  everything  goes 
well,  and  when  he  talks  of  going  away  even  the  children  are 
alarmed,  all  confiding  in  him  for  good  times.  Father,  be  as- 
sured that  no  insult  will  ever  be  offered  him ;  we  are  all  ready 
to  place  ourselves  in  front  of  him,  and  will  defend  him  on  all 
occasions." 

To  this  characteristic  expression  the  Governor  responded : 
"  You,  it  is,  who  reared  the  child  of  whom  you  now  complain. 
He  will  remain  witli  you  as  long  as  the  good  of  the  service  will 
not  require  me  to  recall  him.  I  am  persuaded  of  your  affec- 
tion for  him,  and  of  the  quietness  he  secures  you  when  in  your 
country." 

There  is  no  more  doubt  of  Seneca  affection  for  this  man 
than  there  is  of  English  hatred  of  him.  Late  in  1714  four 
23  X.  Y.  Col.  Docs.  IX,  1102. 


SONS  OF  THE  ELDER  JONCAIKE  .'527 

Onondagas  "  came  to  Lake  Ontario  to  warn  Sicur  de  Jon- 
cairc  not  to  pass  by  Chouoghen  [Oswcgo]  except  at  night, 
as  the  English  had  issued  orders  to  take  him  dead  or 
alive."  24 

In  1745,  writing  to  the  Minister,  the  Count  de  Maurepas, 
Beauharnois  observed:  "At  their  [the  Senccas']  request  I 
have  sent  Sieur  de  Joncaire  to  their  country;  he  is  to  preserve 
them  in  their  apparent  dispositions,  and  to  render  me  an  ac- 
count of  the  smallest  change  that  may  be  effected  by  the  ur- 
gent solicitation  of  the  English,  and  by  the  resolutions  to  be 
adopted  at  a  great  Council  to  be  held  in  the  course  of  this 
month  at  Orange,  which  the  Five  Nations  are  to  attend."  It 
was  at  this  council  in  Albany,  October  8,  1745,  that  Hendrick, 
a  Mohawk  sachem,  looking  for  favors  from  the  English,  told  a 
rambling  tale  of  the  plottings  of  one  "  Jean  Ceur  "  who,  it  is 
explained  in  the  English  record,  is  "  a  French  Indian  who  gen- 
erally resides  amongst  the  Sinnekes,  one  of  our  Six  Nations, 
and  docs  us  much  Mischief  amongst  them."  2''  Two  years 
later,  a  delegation  of  Cayugas  and  Onondagas  told  Governor 
Clinton  that  "  some  Cocknewaga  [Caghnawaga]  Indians  were 
arrived  at  Yaugrec  [Niagara]  with  a  large  packet  of  letters, 
part  of  which  were  for  John  Ccur  at  the  Seneca's  Country,  and 
part  of  which  were  opened  at  Yaugree,  there  being  Indians 
present  who  say  that  when  they  went  to  read  the  letters,  they 
locked  the  door  on  them,  which  made  the  Indians  suspicious; 
so  one  of  them,  an  Indian  that  understood  French,  stood  and 
listened  at  the  door,  and  found  that  they  had  or  was  about  con- 
cluding to  destroy  the  Five  Nations,  particularly  the  Cayugas. 
That  three  Nations  of  the  Foreign  Indians  have  agreed  to  de- 
stroy the  Fort  at  Yaugree,  for  they  say  a  sort  of  Witches 
about  the  said  Fort  always  keep  the  Path  foul  and  dirty,  and 
for  that  reason  they  have  resolved  to  make  it  clean." 

This  interesting  discovery  was  attributed  to  "  the  Missesa- 
gues,  Wawchattecooks  and  Ockncharusc,  who  have  eight  big 

=•*  X.  V.  Col.  Docs.  IX,  Till. 
-'•-'  X.  V.  Col.  Dors.  VT,  :<«. 

-"'•Speech  of  Indians  to  Gov.  Clinton,  .July  17,  1717.  X.  Y.  Col.  Docs.  VI. 
391. 


328  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

Castles  —  the  biggest  of  all  the  Nations,  these  people  are  1500 
or  2000." 

The  Mississagas  we  know  as  a  tribe  of  Algonquin  stock, 
with  one  or  more  villages  on  the  west  side  of  Niagara.  The 
other  tribes  cannot  with  certainty  be  identified.  First  and 
last  there  was  no  lack  of  evil  spirits  —  some  of  them  fiends 
incarnate  —  at  Fort  Niagara ;  but  the  discovery  of  witches 
must  be  ascribed  to  the  fondness  of  the  aborigine  for  figurative 
speaking.  "  To  keep  the  path  clean  "  was  one  of  the  Indian's 
commonest  and  most  expressive  metaphors.  While  Governor 
Clinton  and  his  council  would  have  been  well  pleased  to  see  the 
western  tribes  destroy  Fort  Niagara,  they  apparently  paid  lit- 
tle heed  to  the  message,  except  as  regarded  "  John  Ceur." 
He  was  neither  a  figure  of  speech  nor  a  thing  of  imagination, 
but  an  ever-active  and  able  adversary. 

Again,  in  an  official  report  of  the  operations  of  the  French  in 
1745,  it  is  noted  that  "  munitions  and  presents  have  been  sent 
to  Sieur  Joncaire,  to  enable  him  to  negotiate  with  the  Iro- 
quois  .  .  .  and  to  retain  them  neutral."  Later  (March  15, 
17-16)  in  a  similar  document,  mention  is  made  of  "  Ensign  Jon- 
caire of  the  troops,  who  was  sent  last  fall  to  the  Senecas,  to 
retain  the  Iroquois  of  the  Five  Nations  in  a  strict  neutrality." 
In  May,  the  "  Sieur  Joncaire,  who  resides  among  the  Senecas, 
sends  us,  in  a  letter,  of  the  1st  April,  confirmation  of  the 
neutrality  of  the  Five  Nations ;  that  the  hatchet  of  the  Eng- 
lish, which  had  been  accepted  by  some  young  Mohawks,  had  been 
returned  to  them  by  the  chiefs  of  that  nation,  who  have  de- 
clared that  they  would  remain  quiet  during  the  war."  27  In 
September,  Joncaire  writes  that  "  no  dependence  is  to  be  placed 
on  the  conduct  of  the  Iroquois,"  etc.,  until  they  return  from 
the  Albany  Council.28  In  a  report  of  April  21,  1747.  the 
Governor  acknowledges  letters  from  "  Sieur  de  Joncaire,  resi- 
dent among  the  Senecas,"  who  reports,  among  other  things,  that 
he  has  sent  a  spy  to  Albany,  and  "  that  there  is  a  secret  under- 
standing between  the  Five  Nations  and  our  domiciliated  Iro- 
quois, to  allow  the  whites  to  fight  each  other  without  interfer- 

27  X.  Y.  Col.  Docs.  X,  41. 
28/6.,  67. 


SONS  OF  THE  ELDER  JONCAIRE  329 

ing  with  them  on  cither  side";  which  would  have  been  a  most 
wise  decision,  could  the  Five  Nations  have  stood  by  it. 

It  is  interesting  to  compare  the  English  records,  at  this 
point,  with  the  French.  At  the  Albany  Conference  of  July, 
1748,  a  Seneca  orator  declared:  "We  shall  not  suffer  Jan 
Cceur  nor  any  French  to  come  and  reside  among  us  " ;  and 
again :  "  Jean  Couer  has  been  given  up  already  by  the  Sine- 
kes."  A  French  record  of  the  same  period,  gives  the  news 
in  different  guise :  "  Sieur  Joncaire,  Resident  at  the  Senecas, 
having  demanded  to  be  relieved,  in  consequence  of  his  health, 
the  General  [La  Galissoniere]  has  appointed  Sieur  [Daniel] 
Joncaire  Clauzonne,  his  brother,  to  succeed  him."  30 

Citations  regarding  the  employment  of  the  two  brothers 
might  be  greatly  multiplied;  but  the  foregoing  sufficiently  in- 
dicate the  general  character  of  their  service.  One  or  the  other 
will  reappear,  often  in  connection  with  matters  of  great  mo- 
ment, as  our  narrative  proceeds.  It  is  clear  that  Joncaire 
pere,  who  died  in  1739,  was  succeeded  as  agent  to  the  Iroquois 
by  his  eldest  son,  Philippe  Thomas,  otherwise  Captain  Joncaire. 
Most  of  the  allusions  in  the  above  quotations  are  to  him. 

Daniel,  otherwise  Chabert,  says  he  was  sent  to  live  among  the 
Indians  in  1725.  Accepting  1717  as  his  birth-date,  he  was 
a  little  boy  of  nine  when  this  service  began.  When  his  father 
died,  Daniel  was  22  years  old,  and  in  1742,  when  Beauharnois 
sent  him  to  the  Senecas,  he  was  25.  From  that  time  on  for 
some  years,  when  both  brothers  are  in  like  employment,  and 
both  usually  referred  to  in  the  documents  simply  as  "  Jon- 
caire," it  would  be  pretense  to  assume  to  point  out  which  one  is 
sometimes  meant. 

In  later  years  the  confusion  largely  disappears.  Philippe 
Thomas  is  a  captain  of  the  Marine  troops ;  Daniel  is  a  lieu- 
tenant of  infantry  in  the  regiment  of  Guienne,  and  as  com- 
mandant of  the  fort  at  the  upper  end  of  the  Niagara  portage, 
tells  his  own  storv  for  us  with  graphic  pen. 

The  commanding  officers  on  the  Niagara,  during  the  earlier 
years  of  French  control,  have  been  indicated  in  the  course  of 

M  X.  V.  Col.  Docs.  VI,  451,  444. 
wib.,  IX,  Ki3. 


330  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

our  narrative.  Whoever  may  have  preceded  La  Salle  in  the 
region,  whether  priest  or  trader,  had  here  no  exercise  of  civil 
or  military  authority.  La  Salle  had  both,  and  properly  heads 
the  list.  In  his  absence,  La  Motte  for  a  brief  time  was  in 
command  at  the  mouth  of  the  river,  as  was  Tonty  at  the  ship- 
yard above  the  falls.  Two  officers  commanded  the  short-lived 
Fort  Denonville  —  the  Sieur  de  Troyes,  and  after  him,  in  1688, 
Captain  Desbergeres.  France  neglected  the  region  until  1708, 
when  the  Government  agent,  d'Aigremont,  met  with  the  elder 
Joncaire  on  the  site  of  Fort  Niagara  and  counseled  how  to 
thwart  the  plans  of  the  English.  Not  again  for  12  years  is 
French  authority  in  the  region  maintained  by  a  representative 
on  the  Niagara.  The  building  of  Joncaire's  trading  house  in 
1720  made  him  the  local  commandant.  In  his  absence  his  au- 
thority passed  to  the  Sieur  de  La  Corne.  Six  years  later,  with 
the  building  of  Fort  Niagara,  began  a  succession  of  military 
commandants  which  continued  until  the  French  were  driven 
from  the  river,  in  1759. 

The  first  commanding  officer  at  the  fort  was  the  Chevalier  de 
Longueuil,  Jr. ;  after  him,  the  elder  Joncaire.  In  1727  M. 
Pommeroy  was  at  the  head  of  the  post ;  Joncaire  again  served ; 
and  in  1729  appeared  the  Sieur  de  Rigauville,  whose  advent 
was  signaled  by  a  mutiny,  as  already  related.  In  spite  of  the 
disturbance,  the  dispatches  of  the  time  speak  well  of  him.  In 
a  report  to  the  Minister,  more  than  two  years  after,31  the 
Governor  wrote  that  the  Niagara  mutiny  would  have  been  re- 
ported the  year  before,  "  had  it  originated  from  any  other 
cause  than  the  intoxication  of  some  soldiers  belonging  to  the 
garrison,  on  the  day  of  the  commotion,  and  perhaps  the  state 
of  discipline  which  Sieur  de  Rigauville,  the  new  commandant, 
had  somewhat  neglected."  To  counteract  this  accusation  the 
Governor  continued :  "  This  officer  comports  himself  very  well 
at  his  post,  where  he  causes  the  duty  of  the  service  to  be  per- 
formed with  as  much  exactness  as  in  a  hostile  country.  We 
have  none  other  than  very  favorable  testimony  to  report  to  you, 
of  his  conduct."  He  is  again  commended,  five  years  later,32 

;{i  Beauharnois  and  Ilocquart  to  Count  de  Maurepas,  Oct.  13,  1731. 
-'Letter  to  the  Minister,  Sept.  12,  1730. 


SONS  OF  THE  ELDER  JONCAIKE  331 

for  his  care  in  keeping  -coyagcurs  from  passing  along  the  south 
shore  of  the  lake,  where  they  might  fall  into  the  toils  of  the 
English. 

The  officer  commonly  designated  as  de  Rigauville,  was  Nico- 
las-131aise  des  Bergeres  et  de  lligauville.  Born  in  1682,  he  ap- 
pears in  official  lists  of  1695  as  an  ensign.  At  Quebec,  April 
4,  1712,  he  married  Aiarie-Francoise,  daughter  of  Fra^ois 
Pachot.  In  1727  he  was  seigneur  of  Bellechasse  and  lieuten- 
ant of  a  company ;  in  1736  he  was  made  a  captain.  He  ap- 
pears to  have  commanded  at  Niagara  from  1729  until  about 
1740.  His  death,  which  may  have  occurred  at  the  old  fort, 
is  mentioned  in  a  dispatch  of  May,  of  that  year. 

He  was  still  in  command,  in  1738,  when  an  incident  occurred 
that  broke  the  monotony  of  their  isolated  existence.  Two  of 
his  Indian  hunters  had  set  out  for  Grand  Island;  on  the  way 
over  the  portage  they  had  "  tasted  several  times  "  some  brandy, 
the  result  being  that  they  were  overcome  in  their  canoe,  and  in- 
stead of  paddling  up  to  Grand  Island  they  drifted  towards  the 
falls.  By  great  effort  they  reached  what  is  now  known  as 
Goat  Island,  but  they  could  not  get  off.  They  made  a  ladder 
of  basswood  bark,  let  themselves  down  over  the  cliff  between  the 
two  falls  and  in  the  lower  river  tried  to  swim  ashore,  but  ex- 
hausted themselves  in  fighting  the  eddies  and  currents,  which 
they  could  not  get  through.  Worn  out  and  wounded  on  the 
rocks,  they  climbed  up  their  ladder,  resigned  to  death  by  starva- 
tion. Nine  days  they  were  in  this  extremity.  But  other  In- 
dians on  the  eastern  shore  had  seen  their  plight  and  carried  the 
news  to  the  fort.  De  Rigauville  "  caused  poles  to  be  made 
and  pointed  with  iron ;  two  Indians  determined  to  walk  to  this 
island  by  the  help  of  the  poles,  to  save  the  other  poor  crea- 
tures, or  perish  themselves.  They  took  leave  of  all  their  friends 
as  if  they  were  going  to  death.  Each  had  two  such  poles  in 
his  hands,  to  set  against  the  bottom  of  the  stream,  to  keep 
them  steady  "  -  the  river  at  the  east  side  of  the  upper  end  of 
the  island  being  shallow  then  as  now.  "  So  they  went  and  got 
to  the  island,  and  having  given  poles  to  the  two  poor  Indians 
there,  they  all  returned  safely  to  the  main."  A  do/en  years 
later,  when  Peter  Kalm  the  Swedish  botanist  visited  Niagara, 


332  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

the  officers  of  the  fort  told  him  of  the  adventure,  the  first  we 
have  record  of  in  a  vicinity  so  prolific  since  of  tragic  mishaps. 
Kalm  was  so  impressed  that  he  wrote  down  the  story,  which 
was  printed  in  the  Gentleman's  Magazine,  January,  1751  — 
the  first  description  by  an  eye-witness  of  Niagara  Falls,  to 
appear  in  English.  An  engraving,  probably  intended  to  ac- 
company Kalm's  letter,  appeared  in  the  February  issue.  It 
shows  the  ladder,  which  the  Indians  made  and  their  rescuers, 
crossing  with  staves. 


CHAPTER  XVII 

IKONDEQUOIT   AND   OSWEGO 

CLAIMS  AND  CONTESTS  FOR  STRATEGIC  HARBORS  —  PROJECTS  OF 
GOVERNOR  CLARKE  AND  His  SUCCESSORS  —  FEATURES  OF  THE 
FUR  TRADE  AT  OSWEGO  —  FORT  NIAGARA  THREATENED. 

THE  French  had  a  practical  acquaintance  with  the  shores, 
bays,  harbors,  and  islands  of  Lake  Ontario  while  yet  it  was  a 
hearsay  region  to  the  English.  Though  only  the  principal  ex- 
peditions through  its  waters  can  be  noted,  one  must  remember 
that  many  traders  whose  names  are  not  recorded,  for  many 
years  skirted  these  shores,  and  from  their  many  voyages  carried 
back  to  Montreal  and  Quebec  an  intimate  knowledge  of  every 
bay,  bar  and  headland,  which  became  familiar,  though  under 
a  confusing  variety  of  names,  to  all  voyageurs,  coureurs  de 
bois,  and  even  the  less  adventurous  traders  and  officials  of  the 
towns. 

We  have  seen  howr  La  Salle  and  de  Casson  followed  the  south 
shore  in  1669.  One  of  the  earliest  to  know  that  route  well, 
was  the  elder  Joncaire,  whose  letter  written  from  the  Bay  of 
the  Cayugas,  now  Sodus  Bay,  in  1709,  has  been  given. 
(P.  171.)  Sodus  received  less  attention  from  the  early  trav- 
elers than  either  the  Oswego  or  Irondequoit.  After  Joncaire's 
visit  of  1709  we  find  no  mention  of  the  place  until  1725,  when 
de  Longueuil  wrote  that  he  was  going  there  to  "  meet  all  the 
Iroquois,  that  being  the  most  convenient  rendezvous  for  all  the 
tribes."  After  the  establishment  of  the  English  post  at  Os- 
wego, Beauharnois  urged  that  the  French  build  a  trading  estab- 
lishment at  present  Sodus,  and  even  went  so  far  as  to  ask  a 
grant  of  38,047  livres  for  it ;  1  but  the  Minister  disapproved, 
and  on  submitting  his  views  to  Louis,  was  endorsed  in  the  fol- 
lowing unmistakable  language: 

The  King  will  not  have  any  establishment  at  Cayuffa.  That  at 
Niagara  has  called  forth  that  built  by  the  English  at  Chouegiien 

i  Dispatches  of  Beauharnois  and  d'Aigroinont,  Oct.  1,  17JS. 

333  " 


334  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

(Oswego).     If  one  were  made  at  Cayugas  Bay,  the  English  would 
make  one  elsewhere.     Besides,  there  are  already  too  many  posts. 

In  all  the  green  circuit  of  the  Lakes  there  is  no  fairer  spot 
than  Irondequoit  Bay,  on  the  south  shore  of  Ontario  some 
five  miles  east  of  the  mouth  of  the  Genesee.  Shoal  at  the  en- 
trance, with  a  narrow  channel,  it  is  of  good  depth  when  once 
past  the  bar,  and  reaches  inland  five  or  six  miles  between  pic- 
turesque banks,  its  resorts,  camps  and  cottages  populous  in 
summer  with  pleasure-seekers  and  nature-lovers  from  the  near- 
by city  of  Rochester.  A  sheltered  and  fruitful  fishing-ground, 
it  was  a  favorite  abode  of  the  Indian  from  days  immemorial. 
Midway  between  Frontenac  and  Niagara,  the  French  early 
visited  it  and  longed  to  occupy  it.  La  Salle  stopped  there, 
in  1669,  and  again  in  1678,  going  by  this  route  to  the  Seneca 
villages.  In  July,  1684,  we  find  the  priest  Jean  de  Lamber- 
ville  advising  La  Barre  to  make  a  friendly  visit  there  —  ad- 
vice which  the  Governor  would  have  done  well  to  follow,  but 
did  not.  Three  years  later  the  war-making  Denonville  made 
Irondequoit  his  rendezvous,  and  here  came  Tonty,  from  the 
west,  to  meet  him  and  share  in  the  inglorious  destruction  of 
Seneca  villages  and  crops. 

Irondequoit  was  reached  by  several  Indian  paths,  and  was 
the  lakeside  terminus  of  a  much-traveled  trail  from  the  vil- 
lages at  the  foot  of  Seneca  Lake;  but  it  had  not  the  harbor 
facilities  nor  the  strategic  position  of  Niagara,  gateway  to  the 
Ohio  and  the  West ;  so  that,  save  for  an  effort  made  by  the  elder 
Joncaire  to  establish  himself  there  in  1730,  the  French  for 
the  most  part  passed  by  it.  It  early  attracted  the  atten- 
tion of  the  English.  In  1700  Colonel  Peter  Schuyler,  Rob- 
ert Livingston  and  Hendrick  Hanse,  New  York's  commission- 
ers to  the  Onondagas,  gave  credulous  ear  to  Indian  reports 
that  the  French  were  about  to  build  five  forts,  one  of  which 
was  to  be  on  the  Niagara,  and  another  at  Irondequoit,  "  where 
the  path  goes  up  to  the  Sinnekes  Castle."  The  next  year 
Lieutenant  Governor  Nanfan  professed  to  believe  that  he  had 
secured  for  the  colony  title  from  the  Indians  to  lands  "  800 
miles  long  and  400  miles  broad,"  a  point  on  the  boundary  of 


IRONDEQUOIT  AND  OSWEGO  335 

this  valuable  grant  being  "  Jarondigat,"  the  Irondequoit  of 
to-day.2  Occasionally  in  the  correspondence  of  Indian  com- 
missioners or  governors  Irondequoit  is  referred  to  as  belong- 
ing to  New  York  Colony  because  of  this  alleged  Indian  deed; 
but  the  groundless  claim  was  presently  abandoned,  and  New 
York  sought  to  buy  a  site  on  the  bay.  Returning  from  Jon- 
caire's  house  on  the  Niagara  in  June,  1720,  Lawrence  Claes- 
sen  stopped  at  Irondequoit,  where  he  found  a  French  smith 
with  forge  set  up,  mending  the  guns  of  the  Senecas ;  he  was 
the  first  white  resident  of  the  region.  The  aggressiveness  of 
the  French  caused  much  concern  in  New  York  Colony,  espe- 
cially at  Albany,  where,  on  September  14th,  the  mayor,  re- 
corder, and  aldermen  and  justices  of  the  peace  made  a  for- 
mal "  representation  "  on  the  unfavorable  trend  of  events  in 
what  is  now  Western  New  York.  In  the  view  of  Albany  of- 
ficialdom, the  western  frontiers  were  "  in  a  deplorable  con- 
dition " ;  the  Five  Nations  were  also  "  in  a  stagering  condi- 
tion," since  "  they  dare  not  oppose  the  French  in  any  of  their 
designs,  as  is  manifest  by  their  suffering  the  French  to  settle 
above  the  Carrying  place  of  Jagara  at  Ochswecgee,  and  also 
to  suffer  them  to  make  another  settlement  below  the  great 
falls  of  Jagara  this  summer."  "  Jagara  at  Ochsweegee " 
means  "  Niagara  at  Lake  Erie,"  and  would  indicate  an  at- 
tempt by  the  French  to  gain  a  permanent  footing  above  the 
falls ;  but  of  this,  at  this  time,  there  is  no  authentic  record. 
The  long  document  quoted  from  recites  the  dangers  to  the 
colony,  should  a  war  break  out,  "  which  Gord  forbid  " ;  claims 
that  "  the  poor  inhabitants  of  this  City  and  County  would 
have  to  flee,"  and  "  he  that  got  away  first  was  the  happiest 
man  " ;  and  finally  suggests  the  ousting  of  the  French,  "  and 
the  sooner  the  better  by  such  ways  and  means  as  you  shall 
think  proper  but  that  a  fort  be  built  in  covenant  place  at 
Tierondequat  about  ten  leagues  from  the  Sinnekes  Castle  and 
one  at  Ochiagara  [Niagara]  and  a  sufficient  number  of  brisk 

2  Some  of  the  score  or  more  of  early  spellings  of  the  designation  of  this 
bay  are  formidable,  as  witness  Onyiudaondnijtant,  Kaniatarontagouat,  and 
Ganniatjatarontrtf/ouat.  The  priest  Jean  de  I.amberville  used  the  latter 
form,  and  also  Paniaforonloffouatj  all  meaning  "  the  lake  turns  aside." 


336  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

young  men  posted  there  with  proper  officers  and  an  intelligent 
sencible  man  reside  there  to  defeat  the  intreagues  of  the 
French,"  etc.3  So  strong  a  representation  was  not  without 
effect.  The  next  year  New  York  voted  £500,  the  use  of  which 
is  best  set  forth  in  Governor  Burnet's  own  language: 

I  have  employed  the  five  hundred  pounds  granted  this  year  by 
the  Assembly  chiefly  to  the  erecting  and  encouraging  a  Settlement 
at  Tirandaquat,  a  creek  on  the  Lake  Ontario  about  sixty  miles  on  this 
side  Niagara  whither  there  are  now  actually  gone  a  company  of  ten 
persons  with  the  approbation  of  our  Indians  and  with  the  assurance 
of  a  sufficient  number  of  themselves  to  live  with  them  and  be  a  guard 
to  them  against  any  surprize  &  because  the  late  President  of  the 
Council  Peter  Schuylers  son  first  offered  his  service  to  go  at  the 
head  of  this  expedition  I  readily  accepted  him  and  have  made  him 
several  presents  to  equip  him  and  given  him  a  handsome  allowance 
for  his  own  salary  and  a  commission  of  captain  over  the  rest  that  are 
or  may  be  there  with  him  &  Agent  to  treat  with  the  Indians  from 
me  for  purchasing  Land  and  other  things  which  I  the  rather  did  that 
I  might  show  that  I  had  no  personal  dislike  to  the  family.4 

Into  this  western  wilderness  then  came  these  Argonauts  in 
English  interest.  There  is  nothing  to  show  that  they  reached 
the  Niagara,  or  tried  to ;  but  to  Irondequoit  Bay,  probably 
on  the  east  side  near  the  head,  the  reputed  site  of  the  ancient 
Seneca  village,  these  young  Albany  Dutchmen  came  in  the 
fall  of  1721.  Peter  Schuyler,  Jr.,  was  captain  of  the  band; 
his  lieutenant  was  Jacob  Verplanck ;  and  others  were  Gilleyn 
Verplanck,  Johannis  Visger,  Jr.,  Harmanus  Schuyler,  Johannis 
Van  der  Bergh,  Peter  Groenendyck  and  David  van  der  Hey- 
den.5  There  are  said  to  have  been  ten  in  the  company,  but  no 
other  names  appear  in  the  records. 

It  was  a  fine  adventure;  and  were  the  journal  which  Cap- 
tain Schuyler  was  instructed  to  keep  in  known  existence,  it 
should  afford  material  for  an  important  and  not  unpicturesque 
chapter  in  the  long  strife  between  Great  Britain  and  France 

3 "  Representation   of  the   authorities  of  the   city  of   Albany,"   Sept,   14, 
1720. 

*  Burnet  to  the  Lords  of  Trade,  New  York,  Oct.  16,  1721. 
s  X.  Y.  Col.  MSS.  LXIV. 


IRONDEQUOIT  AND  OSWEGO  337 

for  control  of  the  fur  trade.  In  lack  of  it,  we  have  no  better 
source  of  information  concerning  the  venture  than  Governor 
Burnet's  letter  of  instructions ;  wherein  it  is  set  forth  that  these 
young  men  are  to  settle  in  the  Senecas'  country  "  to  drive  a 
trade  with  the  far  Indians  that  come  from  the  upper  Lakes." 
They  were  also  allowed  to  trade  with  "  Sundry  French  men 
called  by  the  Dutch  Bush  Loopers  and  by  the  French  Coureurs 
Dubois  who  have  for  several  years  abandoned  the  French  Col- 
ony of  Canada  and  live  wholly  among  the  Indians  " ;  more 
important  yet,  they  were  to  purchase  land  at  Irondequoit  (al- 
though the  English  already  claimed  title  to  it),  and  also  "  such 
lands  above  the  falls  of  lagara  50  miles  to  the  southward  of 
said  falls"  as  the  Senecas  might  be  willing  to  sell.  Governor 
Burnet  wrote  that  "  it  is  thought  of  great  use  to  the  British 
Interest  to  have  a  Settlement  upon  the  nearest  part  of  the  Lake 
Eree  near  the  falls  of  lagara,"  G  in  other  words,  the  present 
site  of  Buffalo.  It  was  the  first  English  attempt  to  gain  a 
foothold  in  the  region,  and  the  second  attempt  to  wrest  from 
the  French  some  part  of  the  trade  of  the  lakes.  The  earlier 
one,  the  disastrous  expeditions  of  Rooseboom  and  MacGreg- 
orie  in  1685-86,  has  been  related.  Nor  was  any  better  result 
to  reward  the  present  effort,  for  although  Burnet  was  a  man 
of  insight  and  resolution,  the  monopoly  enjoyed  by  the  French 
at  Niagara  and  Frontcnac  was  not  seriously  disturbed.  There 
was  at  this  time  no  sale  of  lands  on  Lake  Erie,  nor  at  Ironde- 
quoit ;  after  a  year  in  the  wilderness,  the  Albany  Dutchmen 
returned  home ;  Governor  Burnet  abandoned  Irondequoit  and 
a  few  years  later  fixed  upon  the  mouth  of  the  Oswego  as  a  base 
for  operations. 

Irondequoit  however  continued  a  place  of  some  importance 
in  the  affairs  of  the  time;  it  was  on  the  old  highways  and 
many  a  French  trader  turned  his  canoe  between  the  headlands 
that  guard  the  entrance  to  the  bay,  to  find  profitable  traffic 
with  the  Indians,  Iroquois  or  Western,  who  passed  that  way. 
The  English  never  ceased  to  covet  it.  In  1724  the  Commis- 
sioners for  Indian  Affairs  urged  that  "forts  be  built  and 

«  Burnet's  Instructions  to  Capt.  Peter  Schuyler,  Jr.;  N.  Y,  Council  Min- 
utes, 17J1,  XII,  Ki8-17:5. 


338  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

men  posted  at  Ochjagara  or  Therondequat  or  between  these 
places."  Nothing  came  of  it ;  but  seven  years  later  we  find 
Governor  Clarke  upbraiding  the  Senecas  for  giving  the  French 
leave  to  build  at  Irondequoit.  In  1737,  Lieutenant  Governor 
Clarke  sought  to  have  the  Senecas  revoke  the  consent  he  heard 
thcv  had  given,  that  "  John  Coeur,  a  Frenchman  from  Can- 
ada," might  build  a  house  at  Irondequoit.  To  the  New  York 
Assembly  he  argued  that  if  the  French  occupied  this  point, 
they  would  intercept  all  the  western  fur  on  its  way  to  Oswego. 
The  chiefs  protested  that  the  French  should  not  build  there. 
The  next  year  Clarke  tried,  but  without  success,  to  gain  the 
coveted  consent  for  the  English.  An  Indian  deed  dated  Janu- 
ary 10,  1740,  signed  by  several  sachems  and  decorated  with 
their  crude  clan  symbols,  acknowledges  receipt  of  £500  and 
grants  to  the  English  a  tract  20  by  30  miles,  including  Iron- 
dequoit Bay  and  the  site  of  Rochester.  For  years  after,  the 
English  alluded  to  this  tract  as  a  purchase,  and  from  time 
to  time  made  suggestions  regarding  it.  In  1742  Governor 
Clarke  wrote :  "  The  present  I  fear  is  not  the  time  to  settle 
Tierondequat,  the  people's  apprehensions  of  a  French  war  de- 
terring them  from  the  thoughts  of  it."  7  In  a  subsequent  let- 
ter 8  he  pleaded  earnestly  for  the  occupation  and  defense  of 
the  region,  though  his  plans  were  not  confined  to  the  Ironde- 
quoit grant,  for  Oswego  was  now  well  established.  "  I  en- 
deavored," he  wrote,  "  all  I  could,  to  get  people  to  settle  at 
Tierondequat,  but  in  vain.  The  apprehension  of  a  rupture 
with  France  deters  them,  and  makes  it  absolutely  necessary  to 
secure  that  important  place  before  the  rupture  happens."  He 
proposed  that  a  detachment  of  80  men  from  the  four  inde- 
pendent companies  of  New  York  Colony,  with  a  captain  and 
two  lieutenants,  be  posted  at  Irondequoit,  and  that  "  a  Proper 
Fort  be  built  there,  and  some  small  Field  Pieces  with  Ammu- 
nition, etc.,  sent  thither  both  for  their  own  defence  and  for 
that  of  the  harbour."  If  he  failed  to  kindle  at  Whitehall  some 
glow  of  interest  in  these  distant  shores  and  waters,  it  was 
through  no  lack  of  enthusiasm  on  his  part. 

7  Clarke  to  the  Lords  of  Trade,  Nov.  29,  17-12. 

8  Same  to  same,  June  19,  1743. 


IRONDEQUOIT  AND  OSWEGO  339 

No  historical  narrative  of  Lake  Ontario  and  Western  New 
York  at  this  period  can  ignore  George  Clarke.  Could  he  have 
had  his  way,  the  French  would  have  been  driven  summarily 
from  the  Lakes.  In  a  long  letter  to  the  Duke  of  Newcastle, 
Clarke  outlined  the  whole  situation  of  lake  control  and  traf- 
fic; told  how  the  French  had  lately  had  three  and  now  (1743) 
had  two  sailing  vessels  on  Lake  Ontario ;  how  from  their  stone 
forts  Frontenac  and  Niagara,  they  dispatched  traders  to  all 
the  tribes  and  down  the  Mississippi;  to  all  of  which  the  only  op- 
position made  by  the  English  was  the  little  garrison  of  20 
men  at  Oswego,  sure  to  fall  into  the  hands  of  the  French  as 
soon  as  war  broke  out.  lie  wished  vigorously  to  contest  the 
control  of  the  Lakes,  and  proposed  that  a  regiment  of  800 
men  be  sent  from  England,  or  if  only  400,  as  many  more 
might  be  raised  in  the  colony ;  these  men,  with  engineers,  ar- 
tillery, ammunition  and  supplies,  he  proposed  to  place  at 
various  points  on  the  Ontario  shore  '*  in  the  Sinecas'  coun- 
try, at  a  proper  Harbour  for  building  Vessells,  there  being 
more  than  one  of  sufficient  depth  of  water.  .  .  .  That  there 
be  built  two  or  three  Vessells  of  superior  Force  to  those  of 
the  French,  on  board  whereof  a  few  sailors,  and  a  sufficient 
number  of  soldiers  being  put  with  the  proper  officers,  we  may 
take,  sink  or  otherwise  destroy  the  French  Vessels,  and  then 
easily  take  their  Forts  on  the  Lake  .  .  .  and  the  Trade  and 
Influence  of  our  Enemy  will  be  confined  to  the  Cold  Country 
of  Canada,  which  will  scarce  be  worth  keeping."  But  the 
south  shore  of  Ontario  was  warm  and  fertile,  and  in  the  vision 
of  this  man,  no  sooner  were  the  English  in  control  of  the 
lake,  than  farmers  would  flock  to  the  lakeside  garrisons,  "  be- 
ing sure  both  of  protection  and  of  a  market  for  what  they 
raise."  He  even  proposed  that  cattle  be  driven  thither  from 
Albany,  "  with  as  much  ease  as  they  now  are  to  the  garrison 
at  Oswego." 

Visionary,  Clarke  may  be  called ;  yet  his  vision  was  clear 
and  far-sighted,  and  could  his  projects  have  received  even  a 
measure  of  support  from  the  home  government  the  develop- 
ment of  Western  New  York  under  the  English  would  have  be- 

o  Lt.  Gov.  Clarke  to  the  Duke  of  Xi-wcustle.  June  1!),  TT-Vf?. 


340  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

gun  half  a  century  sooner  than  it  did,  and  the  control  of  lake 
trade  and  the  Fall  of  Canada  have  been  materially  hastened. 
But  to  the  Lords  of  Trade  and  Ministers  in  London,  Lake  On- 
tario, its  shores  and  harbors,  even  the  value  of  its  trade  con- 
trol, were  remote,  vague  propositions,  on  which  money  was  not 
to  be  rashly  wasted.  Clarke's  pleadings  were  pigeonholed  and 
forgotten,  and  the  French  continued  their  domination  for  a 
decade  and  a  half  yet  to  come. 

Of  an  old  Somersetshire  family,  Clarke  was  a  young  barrister 
at  Swainswick,  near  Bath,  when  in  1703  he  was  appointed  sec- 
retary of  the  Province  of  New  York.  He  was  called  to  the 
Council  in  1715  and  became  Lieutenant  Governor  in  1736. 
The  suicide  of  the  Governor,  Sir  Danvers  Osborn,  in  that  year, 
made  Clarke  the  acting  Governor.  He  administered  the  Gov- 
ernment until  1743,  when  he  was  succeeded  by  George  Clinton. 
Two  years  later  he  returned  to  England,  taking  with  him,  it 
is  said,  a  fortune  of  £100,000  —  a  striking  proof  of  the  money- 
making  opportunities  in  America,  even  at  that  early  day,  for 
public  servants  who  chose  to  use  them.  Clarke  died  at  an 
advanced  age  in  1759,  the  very  year  in  which  Great  Britain 
practically  carried  out  some  of  the  measures  against  the  French 
which  he  had  urged  twenty  years  before.  He  was  a  member 
of  the  New  York  Council  four  years  before  the  elder  Jon- 
caire  built  his  trading  station  at  Lewiston,  and  ten  years  be- 
fore the  foundations  of  Fort  Niagara  were  laid.  For  30  years, 
as  an  official  and  administrator  of  the  affairs  of  New  York 
Province,  he  was  a  clear-sighted  observer  of  all  the  French 
undertook  on  the  Lakes. 

In  1737,  having  heard  that  the  French  were  to  build  a  fort 
on  Irondequoit  Bay,  Lieutenant  Governor  Clarke  summoned  the 
Six  Nations  to  a  conference.  It  was  held  at  Albany,  June  24th 
and  days  following. 

"What  is  this  I  hear?"  said  Clarke  to  his  "brethren"; 
"  I  am  told  you  have  given  leave  to  the  French  to  build  a 
house  at  Tiorondequat ;  it  is  a  thing  so  far  beyond  belief  that 
I  could  give  no  credit  to  it  on  the  first  report,  but  it  is  now 
so  confidently  affirmed  that  I  can  no  longer  doubt  of  it."  He 
spoke  at  length,  and  although  there  were  the  usual  phrases 


IRONDEQUOIT  AND  OSWEGO  341 

about  brightening  the  chain  of  friendship,  renewing  the  cove- 
nant, and  the  like,  his  words  were  irritating  to  the  red  men. 

"  Brother  Corlear,"  replied  the  spokesman  of  the  Six  Na- 
tions, "  You  spoke  very  h'erce  and  roughly  to  us,  and  we  hope 
you  will  give  us  the  same  liberty.  We  shall  likewise  tell  you 
your  faults."  The  Englishman  was  no  match  for  the  Indian 
in  effective  oratory,  in  courtesy,  logic  or  accusation.  "  You 
tell  us  you  commit  your  affairs  to  writing,  which  we  do  not, 
and  so,  when  you  look  to  your  books  you  know  what  passed 
in  former  times,  but  we  keep  our  treaties  in  our  heads.  .  .  . 
At  the  time  when  the  French  built  a  house  at  lagara  [Ni- 
agara] the  Governor  asked  us  in  a  public  meeting  why  we 
suffered  it  and  did  not  demolish  it.  We  answered  that  we 
were  not  able  to  do  it ;  but  desired  of  the  Governor  to  write  to 
the  King  about  it,  which  he  promised  to  do ;  but  we  have  never 
heard  more  about  it." 

From  this  telling  thrust,  to  which  Clarke  could  make  no 
reply,  the  Indian  orator  passed  to  an  assurance  that  the  French 
should  not  be  allowed  to  establish  themselves  at  Irondequoit 
"  on  our  lands." 

In  1738,  when  the  English  wished  to  build  a  post  on  Lake 
Ontario,  they  were  met  by  the  same  argument,  and  had  to  be 
content.  The  Indian  had  discovered  that  neither  French  nor 
English  meant  what  they  said,  nor  did  what  they  promised,  in 
regard  to  protecting  him  in  his  territorial  rights. 

Acting  Governor  Clarke's  letters  to  the  Lords  of  Trade, 
to  the  Duke  of  Newcastle,  and  others,  especially  towards  the 
close  of  his  administration,  discuss,  often  at  length,  the  meas- 
ures which  he  thought  should  be  taken  against  the  French 
on  the  Lakes.  To  the  Duke  of  Newcastle,  April  22,  1741,  he 
pointed  out  that  the  French  were  now  somewhat  crippled  on 
Lake  Ontario,  one  of  their  brigantines  being  ''  lately  stranded 
and  broke  to  pieces."  They  still  had  two  others  of  about  50 
tons  each,  which  were  kept  busy  transporting  supplies  and 
men  to  and  from  Frontenac  and  Niagara;  each  of  these  forts, 
he  had  learned,  "  garrisoned  by  a  company  of  regular  forces, 
consisting  of  about  30  or  35  men,  which  may  presently  be  re- 
inforced by  the  Indians.  Both  these  forts,"  he  added,  "  are 


342  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

built  on  the  lands  belonging  to  our  Six  Nations  or  Iroquois." 
In  the  case  of  Frontenac,  at  least,  this  was  a  fatuous  claim. 
Clarke  proposed  that  the  British  at  once  build  two  vessels  on 
Lake  Ontario,  "  of  superior  bigness  and  force  to  those  of  the 
French"  at  some  point  (which  he  could  not  specify)  where 
there  was  a  good  harbor;  and  when  this  considerable  achieve- 
ment had  been  accomplished 

being  well  manned  and  provided  with  gunns  and  ammunition  we 
may  easily  take  or  destroy  those  of  the  French;  and  being  masters 
on  water,  we  may  transport  the  troops  that  may  be  necessary  to  take 
their  two  Forts  and  hinder  the  Enemy  from  building  any  more  on 
those  shores;  and  no  sooner  will  our  conquests  be  known  as  it  will 
immediately  by  the  Indians  now  in  the  interest  or  under  the  influence 
of  the  power  of  the  French,  but  they  will  shake  off  the  yoke  and 
submit  themselves  to  His  Majty's  protection,  whereby  we  shall  of 
course  be  posest  of  all  the  Indian  trade  from  Canada  to  Messasippi, 
which  is  now  in  the  hands  of  the  French,  and  cut  off  the  communica- 
tion between  those  two  places,  so  long  as  those  vessells  are  employed 
on  the  Lake,  which  they  ought  constantly  to  be,  at  least  till  we  have 
taken  Canada. 

And  more  to  the  same  effect.  Governor  Clarke  wrote  in 
a  similar  strain,  and  repeatedly,  to  the  Lords  of  Trade,  urg- 
ing that  control  of  the  Lakes  was  essential  in  order  to  hold 
the  Six  Nations  in  allegiance.  "  I  humbly  think,"  he  says, 
"  that  if  there  be  a  rupture  with  France  it  will  be  absolutely 
necessary  to  take  from  them  their  two  forts  on  Cadaraqui 
Lake,  viz.,  Frontenac  at  the  northeast  end  and  Niagara  at 
the  southwest  end,  and  to  destroy  the  two  brigantines  that 
they  have  now  on  that  lake  which  are  employed  in  carrying  their 
merchandize  from  one  end  to  the  other,  and  men,  ammunition, 
and  provisions  to  those  forts." 

Irondequoit  Bay  continued  to  be  a  coveted  point.  In  1744 
Governor  Clinton,  who  knew  the  region  better  than  Clarke  ever 
did,  proposed  a  fort  on  Irondequoit,  with  a  strong  garrison ; 
and  in  1749  William  Johnson,  who  knew  it  far  better  than 
even  Clinton,  wrote  to  the  latter:  "There  is  a  place  called 
Tierondequat  in  the  Scnecas'  country  which  I  believe  was  pur- 
chased in  Mr.  Clarke's  time,  that  would  be  a  very  proper 


IRONDEQUOIT  AND  OSWEGO 

place  to  fortify  and  settle.  The  French  I  have  been  told  are 
certainly  trying  to  buy  it."  As  late  as  1754?  we  find  Lieut. - 
Governor  DC  Lancey  repeating  these  same  propositions.  To 
the  Lords  of  Trade  he  suggested  a  fort  at  Irondequoit,  where, 
he  professed  to  think,  "  the  Indians  would  settle  under  its 
protection,  become  firm  friends  and  join  us  when  occasion  of- 
fers to  dislodge  the  French  from  Niagara."  When  the  com- 
missioners from  the  several  colonies  met  at  Albany  in  1754- 
to  consider  a  plan  of  union,  it  was  voted  expedient  to  build 
a  fort  at  Irondequoit;  but  the  New  York  Council,  July  llth, 
raised  objections,  arguing  that  other  forts  were  needed  quite 
as  much  as  this,  and  that  the  general  union  to  be  entered  upon 
would  make  them  unnecessary.  These  were  not  sound  reasons, 
but  unpatriotic  subterfuges,  mere  excuses  for  not  spending 
money.  In  October  the  Lords  of  Trade,  goaded  by  the  neces- 
sity of  taking  some  decisive  action,  repeated  parrot-like  to 
the  King  the  recommendation  long  since  made  to  them,  that  a 
fort  be  built  at  Irondequoit,  "  that  the  harbor  there  should 
be  fortified  and  that  armed  vessels,  superior  in  strength  and 
number  to  those  the  French  may  have  upon  the  Lake,  be  forth- 
with built." 

Governor  Hardy  of  New  York  was  not  unmindful  of  the 
situation  on  Lake  Ontario,  though  his  concern  was  merely  with 
the  fur  trade.  It  was  less  to  contest  the  control  of  those 
waters,  than  to  help  trade  conditions  at  Oswcgo  that  he  pro- 
posed, early  in  1756,  he  placing  of  a  garrison  on  Irondequoit 
Bay.  He  heard  that  the  soil  there  was  good,  and  thought  a 
"  valuable  settlement  "  might  be  made,  under  protection  of  a 
fort,  "  if  the  lands  were  granted  out  in  small  parcels,  with- 
out fees,  to  persons  that  would  reside  on  them,  at  first  without 
rent  for  a  term  of  years,  and  afterwards  at  a  small  quit  rent 
to  the  Crown."  10  He  asked  the  approval  of  the  Lords  of 
Trade  on  this  exceedingly  chimerical  colonization  project  in 
the  wilds  of  Western  New  York,  urging  that  "  by  means  of 
this  fort  and  settlement  we  should  soon  be  able  to  supply  the 
garrison  of  Oswego  at  a  cheap  rate,  and  by  the  trade  which 
would  in  consequence  be  carried  on,  with  the  Sennckas,  so 

10  Hardy  to  the  Lords  of  Trade,  "  Ft.  George,  X.  York,  1G  Jan.,  17.36." 


344  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

near  their  own  habitations,  we  might  soon  gain  an  ascendant 
over  them,  as  numbers  of  them  would  draw  near  this  fort  for 
security  by  which  means  we  might  be  able  to  fix  the  affections 
of  these  Indians,  who  are  the  most  numerous  of  the  Six  Nations, 
to  the  British  interest."  1X 

There  are  still  other  recommendations  in  regard  to  the  place, 
but  no  money  was  appropriated,  nor  were  troops  or  builders, 
either  of  forts  or  vessels,  sent  to  much-talked-of  Irondequoit, 
which  remained  unfortified  and  unsettled,  a  rendezvous  for  trad- 
ers and  travelers  over  the  old  trails,  until  the  end  of  the  French 
regime,  and  Sir  William  Johnson's  victory  at  Niagara  gave 
the  English  for  the  first  time  a  substantial  hold  on  the  region. 

The  operations  of  the  French  on  the  Lakes  Ontario  and 
Erie,  in  the  earlier  years  of  their  activities,  were  of  much  the 
same  character.  Except  for  an  occasional  clash  with  savages 
there  was  little  to  be  chronicled  save  the  passing  of  expedi- 
tions. But  during  the  last  few  years  of  French  control,  a 
very  different  train  of  events  developed  on  the  waters  of  On- 
tario, from  any  that  Erie  was  to  know.  On  the  latter  lake, 
with  the  exception  of  the  portage  landings  of  Chautauqua  and 
Presqu'  Isle,  there  were  no  French  settlements  to  be  defended, 
no  fortified  points  to  serve  as  base  of  operations ;  not  even 
Detroit,  which  was  30  miles  from  the  lake,  became  the  occasion 
of  any  conflict  or  strategic  movement  on  Lake  Erie. 

Sandusky  Bay  was  a  point  of  some  importance  for  various 
early  expeditions,  but  there  was  no  French  establishment  there 
that  demands  our  attention.  In  fact,  the  English,  and  not  the 
French,  first  fortified  it.  As  early  as  1745  English  traders 
from  Virginia  and  Pennsylvania  built  a  stockaded  trading- 
post  on  the  bay  opposite  the  mouth  of  Sandusky  River.  This 
was  the  chief  provocative  of  Celoron's  expedition  of  1749.  It 
was  the  first  English  establishment  on  Lake  Erie,  and  was 
made  possible  only  by  the  enmity  towards  the  French  which  was 
felt  by  the  Indians  who  had  their  villages  on  or  near  Sandusky 
Bay.  In  1751,  when  Celoron  was  commandant  at  Detroit,  he 
built  a  trading-post  on  Sandusky  Bay;  and  three  years  later 
the  French  built  Fort  Junundat  on  the  east  side  of  that  bay. 

11/6. 


IROXDEQUOIT  AND  OSWEGO  345 

For  the  most  part,  the  operations  of  the  French  in  that  vi- 
cinity pertain  to  the  story  of  Detroit,  or  at  least  are  so  little 
associated  with  the  movements  which  make  up  the  history  of 
the  Niagara  as  to  call  for  no  further  consideration  in  this 
connection. 

The  conditions  on  Lake  Ontario  were  different.  Here  the 
French  were  well  established  at  Frontenac  on  the  northeast, 
Niagara  to  the  southwest,  and  on  a  small  scale  at  Toronto; 
while  at  Oswego  were  the  English.  Each  of  the  rivals,  in  the 
later  years,  had  some  armed  shipping,  and  by  the  time  the  war 
of  1756  was  actually  declared,  was  in  condition  to  make  an 
effort  for  the  control  of  these  waters. 

The  building  of  the  first  English  post  at  the  mouth  of  the 
Oswego  River  —  occupied  for  trade  as  early  as  1724,  but  first 
fortified  in  1726,  has  been  noted  in  a  preceding  chap- 
ter. Much  to  the  irritation  of  the  French  the  post  was  main- 
tained, with  a  fluctuating  but  at  times  considerable  trade  drawn 
away  from  the  French.  In  1741  the  Colonial  Assembly  granted 
£600  for  building  a  stone  wall  around  the  trading  house ;  but 
the  next  year  Governor  Clarke  denounced  the  work  as  "  a  jobb 
calculated  rather  to  put  money  in  the  Pockets  of  those  who 
have  the  management  of  the  business,  than  any  real  service  to 
the  publick,"  which  has  a  singularly  modern  sound.  Nominal 
peace  between  the  Powers  continued  until  1744.  During  these 
first  seventeen  years  of  its  existence  its  garrison  rarely  if  ever 
exceeded  20  men,  with  a  lieutenant  sergeant  and  corporal ;  too 
feeble  a  force  to  have  withstood  any  considerable  body  of  the 
enemy,  who  were  constantly  passing  between  Frontenac  and 
Niagara.  An  incident  in  the  latter  part  of  this  period  was  the 
visit  of  John  Bartram,  the  Philadelphia  botanist,  whose  jour- 
ney thither  in  July,  1743,  and  graphic  description  of  conditions 
as  he  found  them,  need  only  be  alluded  to.1- 

A  considerable  settlement  of  traders  and  Indians  grew  up 
around  the  fort;  but  on  the  breaking  out  of  King  George's 
War  in  March,  1744,  most  of  the  whites  retired  to  less  exposed 
places.  Lieutenant  John  Lindesay,  founder  of  the  settlement 
of  Cherry  Valley,  was  appointed  commander  at  Oswego,  and  a 

12  See  ISiirtrain's  "Observations,"  London,  1751. 


346  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

reluctant  Assembly  authorized  Governor  Clinton  in  some  small 
expenses  for  defense,  the  principal  item  being  six  cannon.  A 
French  attack  was  expected ;  now  and  again  there  were  alarms. 
With  their  two  sailing  vessels  and  forts  at  either  end  of  the 
lake,  the  wonder  is  the  French  did  not  seize  Oswego.  Beau- 
harnois  contemplated  it,  but  decided  the  difficulties  were  too 
great.  In  an  elaborate  letter  to  the  Minister,13  he  argued  that, 
should  he  attack  Oswego,  "  the  inevitable  loss  of  the  post  of 
Niagara  "  would  follow ;  "  and  you  know,  My  Lord,"  he  added, 
"  it  is  far  from  being  in  a  condition  to  resist  the  force  the 
English  can  dispatch  against  it."  Niagara  at  this  date  had 
a  garrison  of  64  soldiers  and  six  officers,  commanded  by 
Celoron.  In  the  summer  of  1744  de  Lery  and  La  Moran- 
diere  had  repaired  and  doubled  the  stockades,  so  that  it  was 
now  in  better  state  for  defense  than  ever  before ;  yet  its  arma- 
ment was  pitiably  weak,  consisting  of  five  peteraros  and  four 
two-pounders  —  enough  to  deter  Indians  but  of  little  avail 
against  any  English  force  determined  enough  to  reach  the 
place. 

Beauharnois  having  reasoned  that  there  were  too  many  diffi- 
culties in  the  way,  did  not  attack  Oswego,  but  contented  him- 
self with  gaining  a  pledge  from  the  Six  Nations  that  they 
would  remain  neutral.  He  thought  it  well,  however,  to  order 
Joncaire,  who  was  in  Quebec  at  this  time  (October)  to  follow 
the  north  shore  of  Lake  Ontario,  in  returning  to  Niagara. 
The  Senccas  were  asking  for  their  NitacTimon,  by  which  name 
they  designated  Joncaire ;  who  was  warned  by  a  delegation  of 
four  Onondagas  not  to  pass  by  Oswego  except  at  night,  "  as 
the  English  had  issued  orders  to  take  him  dead  or  alive." 

Joncaire's  younger  brother,  Chabert,  was  at  this  time  among 
the  Senecas.  Returning  to  Niagara  he  reported  to  Celoron, 
the  commandant,  that  two  English  messengers  had  come  to  the 
Seneca  villages,  with  wampum  belts,  asking  that  a  chief  of 
each  of  the  Six  Nations  be  sent  to  Oswego  to  guard  the  fort. 
The  English  held  that  they  were  entitled  to  this,  since  the  Sen- 
ccas went  so  freely  to  Niagara.  The  Senecas  replied,  they  had 
a  chief  on  the  Niagara  "  to  settle  any  difficulties  that  liquor 

is  Beauharnois  to  the  Count  de  Maurepas,  Oct.  8,  1744. 


IRONDEQUOIT  AND  OSWEGO  347 

might  occasion  among  the  Indians  in  the  work  they  had  to  do 
at  the  carrying-place,"  but  they  did  not  wish  to  participate 
in  the  war  between  the  whites.  It  was  a  wise  and  well-kept 
neutrality. 

As  for  the  English  at  Oswego,  they  were  as  fearful  of  a 
French  attack  as  were  the  French  at  Niagara,  of  an  English 
one;  so  that  the  war  came  to  an  end,  and  the  Treaty  of  Aix- 
la-Chapelle  was  signed,  October  18,  1748,  with  no  clash  at 
arms  having  occurred  between  the  rivals  on  Lake  Ontario.  The 
only  effect  of  that  war  in  the  region  was  a  mutual  strengthen- 
ing of  all  fortifications,  and  a  disturbance  of  trade. 

Note  has  been  made  in  preceding  pages,  of  the  founding 
and  early  years  of  Oswego.  The  only  English  establishment 
in  the  region  we  here  study,  it  was  of  marked  effect  on  the 
policy  and  conduct  of  the  French  for  more  than  a  quarter  cen- 
tury; not  merely  in  a  military  way,  but,  even  more  vitally,  in 
its  rivalry  for  trade  and  for  Indian  allegiance.  Many  of  the 
early  provisions  for  its  maintenance  and  regulation,  are  curious, 
and  not  without  a  bearing  on  our  general  theme. 

An  Act  of  the  General  Assembly,  November  25,  1727,  ap- 
propriated £1682,  7  s.  Sl/^  d.,  to  pay  for  and  maintain  "  a  con- 
venient place  called  Oswego,  a  very  good  stone  house  of  2 
storys  high."  This  act  was  amended  the  following  year,  but 
continued  in  force.  In  1729  it  was  enacted  that  "  fines,  pen- 
alties and  forfeitures  should  be  recovered  from  persons  who 
have  incurred  the  same  by  trading  with  the  French  during  the 
time  it  was  unlawful!  so  to  doc,  because  most  of  them  acquired 
great  wealth  by  that  means,  whilst  fair  Traders  did  foregoe 
such  advantages."  These  fines  were  to  be  applied  to  the 
Oswego  debt. 

A  preamble  to  an  Act  of  October  29,  1730,  sets  forth  that 
the  Government  held  it  just  and  equitable  that  the  traders 
should  maintain  Oswego,  "  because  they  reap  the  entire  benni- 
fit  of  the  said  house  v  ;  yet  the  General  Assembly  voted  a  tax 
of  three  shillings  to  be  paid  "  by  every  Inhabitant  Resident 
or  Sojourner  of  and  in  this  Colony  young  and  old  (except 
as  is  hereafter  Exccptcd)  as  shall  wear  a  whigg  or  Peruke 
made  of  Human  or  horse  hair  or  mixt  '"  —the  exemptions  to 


348  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

this  tax  —  truly  enough  a  poll-tax  —  being  poor  people  re- 
ceiving alms,  and  the  King's  soldiers  and  sailors.  The  revenue 
under  this  wig-tax  law  was  to  be  applied,  to  the  amount  of 
£550,  to  victualling  the  troops  at  Oswego  for  one  year  from 
August  1,  1730. 

It  was  ever  a  question  with  New  York  Colony,  what  to 
tax  for  the  up-keep  of  this  post.  "  An  Act  to  support  the 
troops  at  Oswego  and  to  regulate  the  Indian  trade  there," 
passed  September  30,  1731,  laid  a  tax  of  a  shilling  a  gallon 
on  rum  and  ten  shillings  on  every  piece  of  strouds.  This 
Act,  a  very  long  one,  provided  for  the  collection  of  the  tax 
by  commissioners,  fixed  their  salaries,  and  aimed  to  meet  every 
possible  contingency.  In  1729  Harmanus  Wendel  of  Albany 
had  entered  into  a  three-years'  contract  to  supply  provisions 
for  the  troops  at  Oswego,  but  soon  died;  the  new  Act  allowed 
his  successors  £406  yearly  for  the  work,  gave  the  doctor  resi- 
dent there  £40,  and  appropriated  £60  for  shingling  and  re- 
pairing the  trading-house.  It  also  specified  that  huts  for  the 
traders  should  be  at  least  300  yards  from  the  main  trading- 
house  ;  and  further :  "  If  any  of  the  Traders  shall  upon  the 
appearing  of  one  or  more  Cannoes  with  Indians  on  the  Lake 
goe  with  his  or  their  Cannoe  or  other  Vessell  and  shall  either 
Trade  with  such  Indians  or  take  their  Bevers  or  other  skins 
into  possession  or  hinder  such  Indians  from  carrying  such 
Bevers  or  skins  into  their  Owne  Huts,"  they  "  shall  forfeit  the 
sume  of  £50." 

Trade  had  become  profitable  and  competition  was  keen. 
When  a  flotilla  of  canoes,  gunwale-deep  with  furs,  was  seen  ap- 
proaching, enterprising  merchants  would  hasten  out  in  their 
own  boats,  greet  the  Indians  on  the  lake  and  consummate  a 
bargain  before  the  savage  vendors  could  set  foot  on  shore. 
They  would  even  sei/e  the  Indians'  choicest  peltries,  and  in 
the  name  of  trade  rob  the  red  man  at  the  threshold  of  the 
post.  A  hard,  unscrupulous  lot,  these  traders  were.  In  1733, 
complaint  was  made  to  the  Governor,  by  48  Indian  traders, 
of  the  lawless  state  into  which  barter  had  fallen  at  Oswego. 
The  Governor  appointed  David  A.  Schuyler,  who  knew  trade 
conditions  and  Indian  tongues,  as  commissary  at  Oswego. 


IRONDEQUOIT  AND  OSWEGO  319 

The  bolder  spirits  held  him  in  contempt.  Finally  the  Colony 
took  cognizance  of  their  high-handed  methods,  and  passed  an 
Act  (December  l(j,  1737)  forbidding  the  traders  thus  to  go 
out  to  meet  the  Indians  on  the  lake,  "  or  take  their  Bcavors  or 
other  Skins  into  Possession  or  hinder  such  Indians  from  carry- 
ing such  Beavors  or  Skins  into  their  own  Ilutts."  Disregard 
of  this  law,  meant  a  fine  of  £20,  if  not  a  revocation  of  license ; 
and  the  commandant  was  ordered  to  assign  the  visiting  In- 
dians a  suitable  place  for  their  huts,  and  sec  "  that  they  be 
at  full  Liberty  to  trade  for,  what  &  with  whom  they  please." 

The  trading  season  was  from  April  to  August.  The  com- 
missary for  regulating  the  trade  was  required  to  reside  at 
Oswego  at  least  four  months.  Elaborate  regulations  were  made 
for  the  trade  and  the  sale  of  rum,  with  penalties  for  all  in- 
fractions. A  quaint  view  of  Oswego,  which  forms  the  fron- 
tispiece of  the  first  edition  of  William  Smith's  "  History  of 
New  York"  (London,  1757),  shows  a  row  of  houses  bordering 
the  river,  and  to  the  west  of  them  another  row  of  huts,  pre- 
sumably used  by  traders  and  Indians.  The  soldiers  at  Os- 
wego garrison,  after  the  traders  departed  each  season,  had 
a  playful  fashion  of  burning  or  wrecking  these  huts.  This 
"  rudeness,"  as  the  old  law  styles  it,  was  made  the  subject  of 
legislation  in  1732 ;  for  every  such  offense  a  fine  of  £6  was 
imposed,  with  further  punishment  in  the  discretion  of  the 
courts. 

Another  thing  that  gave  worry  to  the  General  Assembly 
was  the  "  pernitious  Practice  "  that  many  traders  had  of  put- 
ting water  in  the  rum  they  supplied  to  the  thirsty  red  man. 
To  meet  the  difficulty,  the  commissary  or  commanding  officer 
at  Oswego  was  required,  under  an  Act  of  1735,  "  to  Exam- 
ine, Taste  &  Prove  once  every  week  or  oftcner  all  the  Rum 
that  is  or  shall  be  brought  to  Oswego."  Provision  was  made 
for  confiscating  any  liquor  not  "  Really  good  and  Merchant- 
able," while  the  too  thrifty  trader  was  mulcted  £30  for  each 
offense.  If  he  found  adulterated  rum,  the  commissary  was 
required,  <;  Immediately,  and  in  the  presence  of  the  Traders  & 
Indians,  which  shall  then  be  present,  to  Pour  out  on  the  Ground, 
or  into  the  River  or  Lake1,  all  and  every  Drop  of  such  For- 


350  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

fcitcd  Rum,  whether  the  same  be  in  Cags  or  any  other  Yes- 
sell."  Than  such  a  scene  as  this,  there  could  have  been  few 
more  tragic  moments  in  the  history  of  the  post. 

More  insidious  were  the  attempts  of  numerous  persons  in 
the  French  interest  to  share  clandestinely  in  the  profits  of  the 
trade  at  Oswego.  An  Act  of  November  8,  1735,  made  it  a 
matter  of  severe  punishment  for  a  trader  to  employ  any  for- 
eigner in  any  way,  even  as  interpreter;  but  negroes  were  ex- 
cepted.  It  was  also  forbidden  to  employ  Indians  as  inter- 
preters, because  persons  thus  engaging  them  "  Engross  a  great 
part  of  the  Trade  which  ought  to  be  of  equal  benefit  to  all 
the  Traders  in  General."  These  provisions  were  continued 
without  material  change,  reenacted  every  two  years  in  the 
Oswego  supply  bill,  down  to  1754.  The  Act  of  that  year  was 
in  force  when,  in  1756,  the  place  fell  into  the  hands  of  the 
French. 

In  1744,  as  soon  as  the  English  traders  at  Oswego  learned 
that  a  state  of  war  existed,  they  became  singularly  panic- 
stricken.  Most  of  them  left  the  place  at  the  first  alarm,  sell- 
ing such  goods  as  they  could  to  whoever  stayed  behind,  and 
hurrying  with  the  remainder  back  to  Albany  and  New  York. 
Their  timidity  excited  the  contempt  of  Governor  Clinton. 
"  You  will  judge,"  he  observed,  in  a  communication  to  the 
General  Assembly,14  "  what  a  baulk  and  discouragement,  this 
instance  of  pusilanimity  has  occasioned  to  those  number  of 
Indians,  of  the  far  Nations,  who  have  rarely  come  to  trade 
with  us ;  but  perhaps,  finding  the  French  had  no  goods  to  sup- 
ply them  at  Niagara,  resolved  to  proceed  to  Oswego,  where 
some  of  them  found  the  place  was  basely  deserted  by  most  of  the 
people,  and  no  goods  to  exchange  for  their  furs;  upon  infor- 
mation whereof,  many  other  Indian  canoes  were  turned  back 
before  they  reached  that  place.  How  mean  an  opinion  must 
the  savages  entertain  of  us,  when  they  find  our  people  so  easily 
frightened,  as  it  were  with  a  shadow." 

Much  debate  resulted  in  an  order,  September  5th,  that  50 
men  be  sent  from  Albany  to  Oswego,  to  reinforce  the  garrison 
and  stay  during  the  winter. 

i*  Aupr.  20,  1744. 


IRONDEQUOIT  AND  OSWEGO  351 

It  was  Walter  Butler  and  Paul  Combs  who  brought  to  Os- 
wcgo  the  news  of  the  declaration  of  war  —  and  they  charged 
the  Colony  £10  for  making  the  journey.  It  was  one  of  the 
first  and  one  of  the  smallest  expenses  imposed  on  New  York 
by  the  War  of  '44.  Although  in  that  war  New  York  did  not 
meet  the  French  on  Lake  Ontario,  she  did  go  to  extravagant 
lengths  in  the  effort  to  gain,  or  hold,  the  several  Iroquois  tribes 
as  allies.  Ten  years  later,  when  the  colony  was  on  the  eve  of 
another  war,  a  great  part  of  its  war  debt  incurred  in  1744—48 
was  still  unpaid. 

In  a  strongly  written  "  Representation,"  addressed  to  the 
Lords  Commissioners  for  Trade  and  Plantations,  the  General 
Assembly,  through  David  .Jones,  its  Speaker,  accused  Governor 
Clinton  of  "  applying  great  part  of  the  money  raised  by  this 
colony,  to  be  laid  out  in  presents  for  the  Indians,  during  the 
late  war,  to  his  own  use."  They  further  accused  him  of  ap- 
pointing a  colonel  of  militia  who  favored  the  French  cause. 
It  was  no  unusual  thing  for  the  New  York  Assembly  to  charge 
the  Governor  with  wrong-doing;  such  was  the  habitual  atti- 
tude towards  many  Governors ;  but  this  was  not  the  ordinary 
spirit  of  fault-finding;  nor  was  it  a  faltering  hand  that  wrote, 
while  protesting  loyalty  to  the  King,  "  yet  we  have  ever  looked 
upon  the  People  of  this  Colony  as  Englishmen,  and  that  as  such 
they  are  entitled  to  the  rights  and  privileges  of  English  sub- 
jects." Expressions  like  this,  cropping  out  with  increasing 
frequency  in  the  utterances  of  colonial  assemblies,  were  the 
subdued  thunder  before  the  storm.  The  year  1754  marks, 
with  scarcely  less  deh'niteness  than  does  1776,  the  rise  of  the 
spirit  of  American  independence ;  nor  can  it  be  doubted  that  in 
the  culmination  of  the  conflict  with  France,  there  was  in  more 
than  one  quarter  a  dawning  discernment  of  the  fact  that  in 
winning  the  Lakes  and  the  Ohio  from  the  French,  they  were 
won  not  so  much  for  a  Power  over  seas,  as  for  a  nascent  na- 
tion, destined  to  people  and  enjoy  the  regions  contended  for. 
Although  Canada  has  remained  a  loyal  colony,  yet  in  the  de- 
velopment and  occupancy  of  what  was  La  Xourcllc  France,  she 
has  been  practically  as  untrammeled  and  independent  as  her  sis- 
ter to  the  south  of  the  Lakes. 


352  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

Paschal  Nelson,  whose  appointment  as  lieutenant  in  one 
of  the  New  York  companies  was  recommended  in  1729,  and 
who  appears  to  have  received  it,  was  by  his  own  account  in 
command  at  Oswego,  though  the  exact  period  of  his  service 
there  cannot  be  stated.  In  commending  him  for  promotion, 
Governor  Montgomerie  speaks  of  him  as  "  a  gentleman  of  this 
country."  He  was  a  nephew  of  Sir  Thomas  Temple,  Governor 
of  Nova  Scotia.  In  1745,  Nelson  wrote  of  his  service  as  fol- 
lows: 

My  duty  as  an  Officer  in  one  of  his  Majesty's  Independent  Com- 
panys  at  New  York,  has  obliged  me  to  be  very  much  in  the  Inland 
Country  amongst  the  Indians  and  practice  their  method  of  travelling. 
I  have  commanded  a  garrison  on  the  great  lake  Ontario  three  years 
and  a  half,  250  miles  from  Albany,  and  have  marched  partys  of  men 
there  by  land  and  water  six  severall  times,  by  which  means  every- 
thing relating  to  this  Country  and  trade  is  familiar  to  me.  I  have 
had  frequent  intercourse  with  the  French  Officers  of  Canada  and 
have  kept  a  constant  correspondence  with  Mons.  Vaudreuele  [szc], 
now  Governor  of  Mississippi.  By  my  advice  and  direction  the  Fort 
on  that  Lake  has  been  enlarged  and  cannon  sent  to  it.  ...  Nigh 
seven  years  of  the  prime  of  my  life  has  been  spent  in  this  sort  of 
service,  amongst  the  Indians,  back  of  our  Province,  to  whom  I  am 
well  known,  and  as  I  was  born  in  that  part  of  the  World,  I  have 
travelled  thro'  most  of  the  Colonies  both  by  the  Sea  shore  and 
Inland.  There  is  hardly  a  family  of  note  with  which  I  am  not 
acquainted.15 

In  1747  Oswego  was  somewhat  strengthened,  Lieutenant 
Visscher  and  a  company  being  sent  to  augment  Captain  Linde- 
say's  force.  The  war  ended  with  no  clash  between  France  and 
England  on  the  Lakes ;  the  Treaty  of  Aix-la-Chapelle  signed 
October  18,  1748,  again  proclaimed  peace,  and  the  warfare 
of  trade,  which  had  somewhat  abated  during  the  years  of 
avowed  hostility,  once  more  resumed  its  paradoxical  sway. 
Captain  Lindesay  resigned  as  commandant,  but  continued  at 
Oswego  as  Indian  agent  and  commissary  until  his  death  in 
1751.  In  the  next  few  years,  Oswego  was  the  seat  not  only  of 

is  Paschal  Xelson  to  Hon.  George  Lyttleton,  July  23,  174.5.  The  original 
MS.  of  which  the  above  is  an  excerpt,  was  offered  for  sale  at  auction  in 
London  in  1915. 


IRONDEQUOIT  AND  OSWEGO  353 

a  growing  trade  with  the  Indians,  and  one  of  Sir  William  John- 
son's important  depots,  but  developed  a  considerable  illicit 
trade  with  the  French.  In  1752  some  building  and  repair- 
work  was  undertaken,  Captain  Stoddard  and  Lieutenant  Hol- 
land being  stationed  there.  In  1754  the  New  York  Assembly 
voted  the  equivalent  of  $1300  for  work  on  the  fort;  and  the 
next  year,  which  witnessed  the  coming  of  Shirley  and  his  army, 
was  further  memorable  because  it  saw  the  beginning  of  Eng- 
lish shipping  on  the  Great  Lakes.  On  June  28,  1755,  at  Os- 
wego  was  launched  the  schooner  Ontario,  the  first  English 
craft  larger  than  a  canoe  to  sail  these  waters.  She  had  40 
feet  of  keel,  mounted  14  swivel  guns,  and  was  made  to  row 
when  necessary.  This  same  season,  at  Oswego,  were  also  fitted 
out  a  decked  sloop  of  eight  4-pounders  and  30  swivels,  a 
decked  schooner  of  eight  4-pounders  and  28  swivels,  an  un- 
decked schooner  of  14  swivels  and  14  oars,  and  another  of  12 
swivels  and  14  oars.  All  of  these  were  unrigged  and  laid  up 
early  in  the  fall.1'5 

When  Shirley  withdrew,  having  relinquished  the  Niagara  un- 
dertaking, Colonel  Mercer  was  left  in  command  with  orders  to 
build  a  new  fort. 

For  many  years  the  English  maintained  blacksmiths  or  gun- 
smiths among  the  Six  Nations,  who  supplied  to  the  Indians 
the  metal-work  they  could  not  make  or  repair  for  themselves. 
Sometimes  they  were  accompanied  by  traders,  at  other  times 
they  themselves  were  supplied  by  the  Colony  with  goods,  and 
carried  on  barter  with  the  natives.  Many  of  these  men  were 
Albany  or  Mohawk-Valley  Dutchmen.  Living  thus  apart  from 
their  own  people  at  remote  Indian  villages,  it  was  no  doubt 
the  rule  rather  than  the  exception  that  they  took  to  wife  In- 
dian women  and  reared  a  family  of  half-breeds.  That  these 
people  of  mixed  blood  were  numerous  throughout  what  is  now 
New  York  State,  especially  towards  the  close  of  the  Colonial 
period  and  in  years  following,  is  attested  by  many  records. 
As  is  the  law  with  mixed  strains,  the  half-breeds  were  usually 
more  ignoble,  more  treacherous  and  less  to  be  trusted  than  the 
worthier  full-blood  Indian. 

i«Mantc,  "History  of  the  Late  War,"  p.  30. 


354  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

Although  the  forest  from  Onondaga  to  the  Niagara  —  the 
mid-lake  region  where  dwelt  the  Cayugas,  and,  from  Seneca 
Lake  westward,  the  habitat  of  the  Senecas  —  was  especially 
under  French  influence,  yet  even  here  the  English  contended 
for  trade  and  the  friendship  of  the  aborigines.  John  Lansing 
"  and  company,"  for  services  as  smiths  "  in  the  Seneka's  coun- 
try," from  September  1,  1743,  to  September,  1744,  presented 
a  bill  to  the  General  Assembly,  of  £40.17  In  April,  17451,  two 
traders  with  goods,  a  servant  and  a  blacksmith,  were  sent  to 
the  Senecas ;  the  traders  were  to  receive  £100  each,  the  smith 
£30  for  remaining  a  year  among  the  Senecas.  Tobias  Ten- 
Eyck  and  John  Van  Sise  were  thus  sent  out,  in  1749 ;  William 
Printup  in  1751 ;  and  many  another.  The  smith  most  fre- 
quently mentioned  was  Myndert  Wemp  or  Wemple  —  both 
forms  appearing  in  official  records  —  who  in  1753  was  sent  to 
the  Senecas  "at  Seneseo  [PGeneseo],  lying  near  Tirondequat 
or  Niagara,"  at  a  yearly  wage  of  £70,  with  an  allowance  of  £50 
for  gifts  to  the  Indians.18 

The  particular  point  of  this  service  is,  not  merely  that  New 
York  Colony  was  not  neglectful  even  of  the  remotest  of  the 
Six  Nations ;  but  that  Chabert,  his  brother  Joncaire  and  other 
agents  of  the  French,  found  their  special  field  disputed  and 
contended  for.  Wemple  resided  for  some  years  between  the 
Genesee  and  the  Niagara,  and  it  is  no  flight  of  fancy  to  suppose- 
that  there  was  more  than  one  clash  between  him  and  Chabert 
as  to  their  respective  rights  in  the  villages  by  the  lakes  and 
streams  of  Western  New  York.  Here  surely  is  suggestive  ma- 
terial for  the  romancer,  with  a  basis  of  fact  none  can  dispute. 

In  1756,  Wemple  was  sent  into  the  Seneca  country,  but 
the  natives  were  so  short  of  food  that  in  April  they  sent  him 
back  to  Fort  Johnson,  where  he  reported  to  Sir  William  that 
as  they  passed  eastward  some  Cayugas,  lately  at  Niagara,  told 

IT  This  and  other  instances  cited  are  drawn  from  the  Journal  of  the  X. 
Y.  General  Assembly. 

18  In  1747  the  Commissioners  of  Massachusetts,  New  York  and  Connecti- 
cut agreed  to  send  gunsmiths  to  the  Six  Nations,  two  men  with  each  smith, 
to  spend  the  winter;  £fWO  X.  Y.  currency  was  appropriated  to  buy  poods, 
which  were  to  go,  to  the  Senecas,  £120;  and  £60  each  to  the  Oneidas,  Onon- 
dagas,  Cayugas  and  Tuscaroras. 


IRONDEQUOIT  AND  OSWEGO  355 

him  there  were  but  100  soldiers  at  that  fort,  but  that  the 
French  were  repairing  it,  making  it  very  strong,  and  had  plenty 
of  provisions.  It  does  not  appear  that  Wemple  ever  reached 
the  Niagara.  lie  complained  much  of  the  rum-selling  carried 
on  by  John  O'Bail,  a  famous  half-breed,  who  boasted  that  he 
did  not  care  for  Sir  William  or  his  regulations,  since  "  for  every 
quart  of  rum  he  sold  he  got  a  Spanish  dollar  " ;  but  according 
to  Wemple,  even  the  Senecas  themselves  protested  against  the 
mischief  he  worked  among  them. 

English  enmity  towards  the  Joncaires  finds  expression  many 
times  over,  in  New  York  colonial  documents.  At  a  Council 
meeting  held  at  Governor  Clinton's  house  in  Greenwich,  April 
25,  1746,  a  letter  was  read  from  the  Commissioners  of  Indian 
Affiairs,  "  signifying  that  certain  persons  will  undertake  upon 
proper  encouragement  to  bring  Jean  Coeur,  a  French  priest, 
to  Albany,  who  is  settled  among  the  Sinnecas.  And  they  are 
of  opinion  his  removal  from  the  Indians  will  be  of  very  great 
service  to  the  British  interest."  This  proposition,  which  prob- 
ably refers  to  Chabcrt's  elder  brother,  was  referred  to  a  com- 
mittee, but  no  Joncaire  was  carried  prisoner  to  Albany.  The 
next  year  a  number  of  Iroquois  chiefs  assured  Colonel  John- 
son they  would  not  let  "  Jan  Cour  "  live  any  more  among  the 
Senecas,  and  even  promised  to  go  and  destroy  Fort  Niagara, 
if  the  English  would  supply  the  guns  and  ammunition.  John- 
son thought  seriously  enough  of  it  to  refer  the  matter  to 
Governor  Clinton,  with  the  suggestion  that  munitions  for  the 
Indians  could  be  had  from  Philadelphia  ;  and  pledged  himself 
to  bring  into  the  field  a  thousand  warriors  in  six  weeks  if 
the  Colony  would  clothe  and  arm  them  — "  or  forfeit  1000 
pounds."  In  the  New  York  Council  minutes  of  that  sum- 
mer occurs  this  entrv:  "That  of  the  new  levies  now  in  this 
Province  ...  G  or  700,  together  with  200  Indians,  be  employed 
against  the  French  fort  at  Ongiara,  at  the  same  time  as  an  at- 
tempt against  Crown  Point."  An  estimate  of  the  cost  of  the 
two  expeditions  was  n<'$,-")60. 

Affairs  were  at  a  low  ebb,  this  summer,  at  the  feeble  little 
fort  which  was  supposed  to  guard  the  mouth  of  the  Niagara. 

1°  Johnson   MSS.:    Johnson  to   Clinton,  Julv   C,>,   1717. 


356  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

De  Contrecceur  and  his  uneasy  garrison  had  ample  reason  to 
be  apprehensive,  for  Chabert  and  his  brother  kept  them  in- 
formed regarding  the  smoldering  hostility  which  the  English 
were  doing  their  best  to  fan  into  a  blaze.  The  western  tribes 
also,  dissatisfied  with  the  frugal  offerings  of  the  French  in  trade 
at  Niagara,  were  reported  ready  to  destroy  the  place.  John- 
son gave  eager  ear  to  these  reports,  and  passed  them  on  with 
his  own  suggestions  to  the  Governor.  August  4th  he  wrote: 

Ottrawana,  the  great  Cayuga  Indian,  and  others  of  the  Five  Na- 
tions, since  they  were  at  Albany  with  your  Excellency,  informed  me 
at  a  private  meeting  at  my  house,  but  in  the  most  formal  manner, 
with  belts  of  wampum,  that  the  foreign  nations,  vis.  the  Chonon- 
dedeys,20  etc.,  were  resolved  to  destrojr  Niagara  as  being  an  impedi- 
ment in  their  way  to  Oswego,  where  they  are  sensible  they  have  been 
always  well  treated,  and  much  imposed  on  at  Niagara,  having  been 
stopt  there  this  Spring  by  their  artifice,  and  obliged  to  pay  20 
Beavers  for  a  Stroud  blanket.  They  have  applied  to  the  Six  Na- 
tions privately  for  liberty  to  destroy  Niagara,  which  they  are  likely 
to  obtain,  having  the  consent  of  some  of  the  chiefs  of  each  nation, 
though  I  am  rather  of  opinion  that  a  proper  number  of  the  King's 
troops  against  it  in  conjunction  with  the  Indians  who  are  so  hearty, 
would  make  it  more  practicable;  besides  it  seems  to  me,  there  would 
be  a  necessity  of  keeping  large  garrisons  both  here  and  at  Oswego, 
for  the  French  would  not  quietly  brook  the  loss  of  it,  being  of  the 
greatest  consequence,  next  to  the  reduction  of  the  whole  country. 

A  few  days  later  21  Johnson  again  wrote  to  the  Governor 
that  the  "  Foreign  Nations  "•  —  meaning  western  tribes,  usually 
hostile  to  the  Iroquois  —  had  sent  six  large  belts  of  wampum  to 
the  Six  Nations  "  desiring  their  liberty  to  destroy  Niagara, 
and  that  it  should  be  done  very  shortly,  meaning  in  a  month 
or  so."  He  added  that  the  Six  Nations  had  sent  to  these  west- 
ern tribes,  to  come  and  join  them  in  the  proposed  attack. 

That  it  did  not  take  place  was  due  to  several  causes.  The 
French,  forewarned,  sent  up  reinforcements.  More  effective 
yet,  were  the  better  bargains  which  they  granted  in  trade. 
Most  effective  of  all,  were  the  constant  labors  of  Chabert  and 

20  I  do  not  identify  this  tribe. 

21  Johnson  MSS.:  Johnson  to  Clinton,  Aug.  19,  1T47. 


IIIONDEQUOIT  AND  OSWEGO  -'357 

liis  brother.  It  may  be  doubted  if  an  Indian  uprising  against 
Niagara  was  as  imminent  as  Colonel  Johnson's  letters  made  it 
appear.  The  Six  Nations,  at  least,  would  have  looked  to  the 
English  for  substantial  backing,  and  would  have  been  slow, 
without  such  aid,  to  cast  in  their  lot  with  traditional  enemies 
of  the  west,  whose  wrath  towards  the  French  was  liable  to 
change,  like  an  eddy  of  a  summer  breeze,  at  the  first  offer  that 
took  their  fickle  fancy. 

The  brothers  Joncaire  continued  to  be  thorns  in  the  flesh 
to  Johnson,  and  lie  wrote  often  of  them  to  the  Governor.  "  I 
am  very  sensible,"  replied  Clinton,22  "  of  what  service  it  will 
be  to  win  Jancour  from  among  the  Indians  if  he  can  by  any 
means  be  brought  over  to  leave  the  French  and  settle  with 
us."  This  had  evidently  been  Johnson's  suggestion.  In  a 
former  letter  the  Governor  had  authorized  Johnson  to  win 
him  by  promises,  "  but  if  that  cannot  be  done  you  are  to  en- 
deavor by  all  means  to  have  him  removed  from  among  the  In- 
dians, and  if  possible  brought  a  prisoner  hither  and  you  shall 
be  paid  whatever  expenses  shall  be  necessary  for  this  service. 
It  is  left  to  your  judgment  from  the  Intelligence  you  shall  re- 
ceive and  take  what  method  you  shall  think  most  likely  to 
succeed,  either  by  promises  to  bring  him  over,  or  to  remove  him 
by  force.  Perhaps  the  hints  from  Jcancour  of  leaving  ye 
French  may  be  only  to  prepare  something  wherein  he  may  value 
himself  among  his  Countrymen." 

This  allusion  is  probably  to  the  elder  brother,  Joncaire,  for 
at  this  period  Chabert  was  chiefly  occupied  with  the  duties  of 
the  Niagara  portage,  and  the  Indians  of  the  Allegheny  and 
upper  Ohio. 

--Johnson  MSS.:  Clinton  to  Johnson,  March,  1740.  The  letter  to  which 
this  is  a  reply  has  not  been  noted. 


CHAPTER  XVIII 

THE  NIAGARA-OHIO  ROUTE 

INSEPARABLE  IN  TRACING  THE  STORY  OF  TRADE  AND  WAR  —  TRAGIC 
EPISODES  IN  THE  DEVELOPMENT  OF  THE  GREAT  CONTEST  — 
THE  BROTHERS  JONCAIRE  ON  THE  OHIO  —  THE  NIAGARA  PORT- 
AGE FORT. 

FROM  1739,  when  the  elder  Joncaire  died,  for  20  years,  the 
activities  of  his  sons  covered  the  country  from  the  Mohawk 
to  the  present  State  of  Ohio.  Often  they  were  associated, 
and  shared  in  the  same  expeditions.  The  elder  brother,  Philippe 
Thomas,  succeeded  his  father  as  special  agent  among  the  Iro- 
quois  of  New  York  State,  but  he  also  was  sent  on  important 
missions  to  the  Shawanese  and  other  tribes  of  the  Ohio  with 
whom  his  father  had  been  especially  concerned  in  his  last  years. 
In  the  latter  years  of  his  life  the  elder  son  was  withdrawn  from 
this  field,  being  succeeded  there  by  his  brother  Chabert,  mas- 
ter of  the  Niagara  portage ;  but  each,  on  occasion,  appears 
in  the  other's  territory,  and  both  made  frequent  journeys  to 
Montreal  and  Quebec,  often  with  delegations  from  the  tribes. 
Returning  from  the  councils,  with  new  instructions  and  stocks 
of  goods,  each  would  set  out  from  the  Niagara  to  the  villages 
or  tribes  he  was  directed  to  visit. 

It  was  a  curious  system  of  physical  and  political  control; 
it  was  also  a  costly  and  wasteful  system,  nor  was  it  always 
successful,  for  the  English  more  and  more  pushed  into  the 
territory.  In  spite  of  their  close  relations  with  the  Indians, 
in  spite  of  their  skill,  energy  and  devotion  to  the  cause  of 
France,  the  sons  of  Joncaire  met  many  a  rebuff,  ran  many  a 
risk,  and  on  the  whole  played  a  losing  game,  but  they  played 
gamely  and  with  spirit  to  the  very  end. 

In  the  last  years  of  his  life,  as  we  have  related,  the  elder 
Joncaire  —  Louis  Thomas  —  was  instrumental  in  relocating 
the  wandering  Shawanese  in  the  upper  Ohio  Valley.  Both  of 
the  sons  shared  with  their  father  in  duties  relating  to  them, 

358 


THE  NIAGARA-OHIO  ROUTE  J359 

and  in  the  years  following  the  father's  death  were  often  sent 
to  scattered  villages  in  the  wide  wild  district  designated 
merely  as  "  the  Ohio."  As  the  years  passed,  it  was  more 
often  the  younger  son,  "  Sieur  de  Chabert  et  Clauzonne," 
whom  we  speak  of  as  Chabert,  than  the  older  brother  Philippe 
Thomas,  who  was  sent  to  this  field.  In  1747  the  health  of  this 
Joncaire,  broke  down  and  Chabert  succeeded  him  as  resident 
agent  of  the  French  among  the  Senecas  * —  whose  villages,  it 
will  be  borne  in  mind,  were  not  merely  in  Western  New  York, 
but  throughout  the  valley  of  the  Allegheny-  Chabert  was 
made  a  second  ensign  on  full  pay  in  1748;2  ensign  en  pied, 
1751 ;  and  lieutenant,  1757.  In  1756  he  replaced  his  elder 
brother  among  the  Six  Nations,  who  with  ceremony  pledged 
fidelity  to  him  and  agreed  to  send  their  chiefs  with  him  to  Mont- 
real the  ensuing  spring. 

The  elder  brother  Joncaire  having  recovered  his  health  was 
again  in  active  service  in  1750,  in  which  year  he  was  sent  on 
one  of  the  most  important  missions  of  his  whole  career.  He 
set  out  from  Montreal  with  a  staff  of  cadets  a  VeguiHette,  and 
four  soldiers.  Two  loaded  canoes  belonging  to  the  trader 
Guilhot,  were  taken  along,  for  Indian  barter.  Two  Cayuga 
chiefs  who  had  been  promised  a  share  in  the  expedition,  were 
sent  for,  and  the  little  company  proceeded  by  way  of  Fort 
Frontenac,  the  Niagara  and  Chautauqua  portages,  down  the 
Allegheny  to  the  old  Indian  town  of  Chinangue  or  Chininque, 
where  Joncaire  was  directed  to  establish  s.  trading-house;  it 
was  to  be  two  stories  high,  battlcmented  (crcnelc)  for  defense. 
So  run  the  instructions  of  the  Governor,3  but  one  may  be 
skeptical  about  the  battlements.  The  word  "  loop-holes,"  bet- 
ter than  "  battlements,"  indicates  the  probable  construction. 
It  suffices  that  it  was  to  be  a  house  capable  of  defense.  Jon- 
caire was  directed  to  explore  the  region,  to  learn  all  he  could  of 

1  "  Siour  Joncaire,  resident  at  the  Senecas,  having  demanded  to  lie  re- 
lieved, in  eonsequenee  of  his  health,  the  General  has  appointed  Sieur  Jon- 
eaire  Clau/.onne,  his  brother,  to  succeed  him." — Journal  of  occurrences  in 
Canada,  1717  S,  in  X.  Y.  Col.  Does.  X,  1(>;5.  The  same  statement  occurs 
in  numerous  French  documents. 

-  President  of  Xavy  Hoard  to  I. a  Galissoniere,  Feb.  28,  1748. 

s  I,a   Jonquiere    to   Joncaire,   June    J-',    1750. 


360  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

the  YenanguSkran  (Monongahela),  and  to  find  a  new  route  by 
way  of  the  River  Blanche,  into  Lake  Erie.  He  was  to  go  down 
the  Ohio  as  far  as  the  Scioto,  discover  new  routes,  make  friends 
with  the  tribes,  and  finally,  report  to  Celoron  at  Detroit.  He 
was  also  instructed  to  keep  a  journal  —  a  treasure  to  the  stu- 
dent to-day  could  it  be  brought  to  light. 

Such  were  the  missions  on  which  Joncaire  and  his  brother 
Chabert  were  sent,  year  after  year.  Makers  of  history  in  a 
vast  region,  their  names  are  scarcely  mentioned,  their  identity 
and  services  confused  or  unmentioned  in  most  narrative  his- 
tories dealing  with  their  time. 

The  next  year  Lieutenant  Joncaire  made  his  presence  on  the 
Ohio  known  to  Governor  Hamilton  of  Pennsylvania  by  the 
following  letter: 

DE  CHININQUE,*  June  6,  1751 

Sir:  Monsieur  the  Marquis  de  La  Jonquiere,  Governor  of  the  whole 
of  New  France,  having  honored  me  with  his  orders  to  watch  that  the 
English  should  make  no  treaty  in  the  country  of  the  Ohio,  I  have 
directed  the  traders  of  your  government  to  withdraw.  You  cannot 
be  ignorant,  sir,  that  all  the  lands  of  this  region  have  always  be- 
longed to  the  King  of  France,  and  that  the  English  have  no  right  to 
come  there  to  trade.  My  superior  has  commanded  me  to  apprise 
you  of  what  I  have  done,  in  order  that  you  might  not  affect  ignorance 
of  the  reasons  of  it,  and  he  has  given  me  this  order  with  so  much  the 
greater  reason  because  it  is  now  two  years  since  Monsieur  Celoron, 
by  order  of  Monsieur  de  La  Galissoniere,  then  Commandant  Gen- 
eral, warned  many  English  who  were  trading  with  the  Indians  along 
the  Ohio,  against  doing  so,  and  they  promised  him  not  to  return  to 
trade  on  the  lands,  as  Monsieur  Celoron  wrote  to  you. 
I  have  the  honor  to  be,  with  great  respect,  Sir, 

Your  very  humble  and  obedient  servant 

JONCAIRE 
Lieutenant  of  a  detachment  of  the  Marine, 

This  letter  was  written  from  the  old  Shawanese  town  on  the 
Ohio  below  Pittsburg  which  later  became  Logstown,  and  later 
still,  the  approximate  site  of  Economy,  Pa.  This  historic  name 
is  now  no  longer  used,  the  place  being  a  sub-station  of  Ambridge. 

The  French  by  no  means  had  things  their  own  way  in  the 

4  Shenango. 


THE  NIAGARA-OHIO  ROUTE  361 

valley.  In  1752  Chabcrt  de  Joncuirc,  on  the  Ohio,  was  assured 
by  an  English  trader  that  the  Governor  of  Virginia  was  com- 
ing in  September,  with  many  men  and  800  horses,  to  hold  a 
council  at  Chiningue ;  and  Chabert  as  in  duty  bound,  sent  the 
report  to  Canada.5  It  was  a  false  alarm;  but  the  winter  that 
followed  —  a  desperate  time  for  every  one  on  the  Ohio,  with 
both  famine  and  smallpox  to  contend  against  —  so  wrought 
up  the  tribes  that  in  the  spring  of  1753  they  sent  a  deputation 
of  chiefs  to  Niagara.  At  the  old  fort,  in  April,  a  council  was 
held  at  which,  in  formal  but  we  may  believe  impassioned 
speeches,  the  French  were  warned  to  keep  out  of  the  Ohio 
country.  The  Indians  had  heard  of  the  great  army  that  was 
coming;  but  neither  protests  nor  threats,  nor  the  picture  which 
they  drew  of  famine  and  death,  stayed  the  undertaking,  one  of 
the  most  dramatic  in  the  history  of  our  region. 

Increasingly,  as  the  years  passed,  the  French  endeavored  to 
control  the  Ohio  Valley  —  to  make  it  a  recognized  possession 
of  France,  to  open  communication  with  Louisiana,  to  hold  the 
allegiance  of  the  resident  tribes,  and  to  keep  out  the  traders 
from  Pennsylvania  and  Virginia.  Quebec  was  obsessed  with 
this  idea  —  the  Ohio  must  belong  to  France;  and  instead  of 
concentrating  her  forces  and  promoting  the  peaceful  develop- 
ment of  the  St.  Lawrence  Valley,  she  frittered  away  her 
strength  and  exhausted  not  only  the  colonial  exchequer  but  the 
Koyal  patience  in  sending  expeditions  and  great  wealth  of 
presents  to  the  shifty  and  unfaithful  tribes  of  the  Allegheny 
and  Ohio. 

The  gateway  to  the  region  was  the  Niagara.  The  story  of 
this  frontier,  always  a  chronicle  of  coming  and  going,  is  never 
more  so  than  for  the  years  on  which  our  narrative  now  enters. 
Nor  can  that  story  be  told  without  paying  some  attention,  how- 
ever slight,  to  the  region  to  the  southward. 

If  we  leave  aside  the  alleged  discovery  of  the  Ohio,  by  La 
Salle,  it  is  an  open  question  which  people,  French  or  English, 
had  precedence  in  the  region.  English  traders  were  on  the 

5  A  memorandum  of  Oct.  1,  ITofJ,  records:  "To  Sieur  de  Joncaire,  Com- 
mandant Relle  Riviere,  annuity  falling  due  in  June,  l~52,  payable  to  Sieurs 
Morin  and  Penissaut,  30(X)  livrev" 


362  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

river  as  early  as  1700,  but  made  no  claim  for  their  Govern- 
ment. In  1715  the  French  were  complaining  because  traders 
from  Carolina  had  appeared  on  the  Wabash.  For  some  years 
the  situation  continued  practically  unchanged.  The  English 
did  the  trading,  the  French  did  the  complaining —  and  noth- 
ing came  of  it.  A  French  officer,  one  of  the  Messrs,  de  Lon- 
gueuil,  Avas  sent  thither  in  1719,  but  no  narrative  of  his  going 
or  coming  is  found  in  the  communications  of  the  time.  The 
Niagara  was  the  only  way,  even  though  he  went  on  to  Detroit 
before  turning  south.  No  mention  of  a  French  expedition  into 
the  Ohio  country  is  found  until  about  the  time  when  Fort  Ni- 
agara was  built.  It  was  in  1724  that  the  Marquis  dc  Vau- 
dreuil  began  his  efforts  to  establish  the  Shawanese  "  nearer  to 
the  colony."  His  theory  was  that  by  assisting  them  to  settle 
nearer  Detroit,  or  other  French  posts,  they  would  be  further 
removed  from  British  influence  and  through  the  agency  at  De- 
troit be  kept  in  French  interest. 

In  1739  Celoron  and  St.  Laurent  had  passed  up  the  Niagara 
with  a  force  of  French  from  Montreal  and  Quebec,  which  has 
been  described  as  a  "  company  of  cadets,  composed  of  select 
youths,  all  of  gentle  birth,  and  the  sons  of  officers."  After  a 
short  apprenticeship,  they  were  entitled  to  be,  in  their  turn, 
commissioned  as  officers.6  With  these,  and  a  considerable 
force  of  Northern  Indians,  Celoron  apparently  made  his  way 
through  Lake  Erie  and  into  the  Illinois  country,  whence,  in 
November,  he  joined  forces  with  other  leaders  from  Western 
posts  and  from  Louisiana,  in  a  campaign  against  the  Chica- 
saws  and  Natchez.  In  March,  1740,  a  treaty  was  made,  by 
which  a  number  of  the  Natchez  Avcre  turned  over  to  Celoron, 
who  according  to  the  writer  just  cited,  returned  with  them  to 
Canada,  "  after  having  razed  to  the  ground  Fort  Assumption." 
Celoron,  it  is  stated,  was  the  only  officer  who  won  any  honors 
in  the  Chicasaw  campaign. 

The  undertaking  scarcely  concerns  us,  except  that  it  proves 
the  passage  of  an  armed  force  through  the  Niagara  and  ad- 
jacent lakes  in  1739,  and  its  return  with  captives  in  the  spring 
of  1740.  That  this  passage  wa?  also  through  the  Chautauqua 

GGayarrt',  "History  of  Louisiana,"  X.  Y.  eel.   18G7,  p.  507. 


THE  NIAGARA-OHIO  ROUTE  363 

route  is  established  by  records  which  appear  later  in  our  nar- 
rative. Pouchot,  describing  the  Lake  Erie  region,  said :  "  The 
River  Chatacoin  is  the  first  that  communicates  from  Lake  Erie 
to  the  Ohio,  and  it  was  by  this  that  they  went  in  early  times 
that  they  made  a  journey  in  that  part."  This  could  hardly 
refer  to  anything  so  recent  in  Pouchot's  day,  as  the  expedition 
of  1749.7 

After  a  decade,  more  or  less,  during  which  the  British  grew 
ever  bolder  in  their  trading  incursions  west  of  the  Alleghanies, 
and  the  French  more  and  more  indifferent  and  expostulatory, 
irritation  reached  the  point  where  the  existing  peace  between 
the  rival  Powers  was  ignored,  and  the  French  commandants  at 
western  posts  with  the  aid  of  friendly  Indians,  captured  any 
traders  in  English  interest  whom  they  could  lay  hands  on. 
Some  of  these  captives  presently  made  a  great  din  at  the  British 
Court ;  it  was  in  fact  the  beginning  of  skirmish  fire  preliminary 
to  an  inevitable  conflict.  The  story  of  several  of  the  traders 
thus  seized  comes  into  the  Niagara  region  and  should  be  noted. 
Earliest  of  all,  perhaps,  of  this  category,  are  the  adventures 
of  John  Peter  Sailing. 

This  worthy  was  a  weaver  of  Williamsburg,  Va.,  of  whose 
remarkable  captivity  conflicting  accounts  exist.  The  data 
which  are  beyond  doubt  are  to  effect  that  about  the  year  1738 
Sailing  and  one  Thomas  Morlin,  a  peddler,  trading  from  Wil- 
liamsburg to  Winchester,  Va.,  set  out  on  a  tour  of  exploration 
into  the  country  to  the  westward.  They  traveled  up  the  Shen- 
andoa.li,  crossing  the  James  and  some  of  its  branches  and  had 
reached  the  Roanoke,  when  Sailing  was  taken  captive  by  a 
party  of  C'herokees.  His  companion,  Morlin  the  peddler, 
eluded  them,  and  made  out  to  reach  Winchester,  where  he  told 
what  had  happened.  There  is  somewhat  less  certainty  about 
what  befell  Sailing.  The  most  detailed  and  apparently  most 

7  Reuben  Cold  Thwaites,  a  usually  careful  writer,  says  that  "in  17KJ 
DC  I, cry  went  with  a  detachment  of  troops  from  Lake  Erie  to  Chautauqua 
Lake  and  proceeded  thence  by  Conewan<ro  Creek  and  Allejrhany  River  to 
the  Ohio,  which  lie  carefully  surveyed  down  to  the  mouth  of  the  Great 
Miami.  ("Afloat  on  the  Ohio,"  Chicago,  1S97;  p.  ,'UH.)  He  refers  to  no 
authority.  De  Lery  passed  through  Chautauqua  with  the  expedition  of 
1 7159. 


364  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

trustworthy  account-- Withers'  precious  "  Chronicles  of  Bor- 
der Warfare  "  —  says  that  he  was  carried  to  what  is  now  Ten- 
nessee, where  he  remained  some  years.  While  with  a  party 
of  Cherokees  on  a  buffalo  hunt,  a  band  of  Illinois  Indians  sur- 
prised them,  captured  Sailing  from  the  Cherokees  and  carried 
him  to  Kaskaskia,  where  he  was  adopted  into  the  family  of  a 
squaw  whose  son  had  been  killed.  Sailing  made  excursions 
with  his  new  captors  below  the  mouth  of  the  Arkansas,  going 
once  to  the  Gulf  of  Mexico.  One  account  says  he  returned; 
but  Withers  says  that  Sailing,  on  the  lower  Mississippi,  fell  in 
with  a  party  of  Spaniards  who  needed  an  interpreter  and 
bought  Sailing  from  his  Indian  mother  "  for  three  strands  of 
beads  and  a  calumet."  He  attended  them  to  the  post  at  Cre- 
vecreur,  on  the  Illinois,  "  from  which  place  he  w7as  conveyed 
to  Fort  Frontignac."  The  route,  at  this  period,  would  have 
been  by  Fort  Niagara,  which  he  reached,  apparently  about 
1743  or  1744 ;  for  at  Frontenac  he  "  was  redeemed  by  the  Gov- 
ernor of  Canada,  who  sent  him  to  the  Dutch  settlement  in  New 
York,  whence  he  made  his  way  home  after  an  absence  of  six 
years." 

Some  time  in  1750,  Ralph  Kilgore  and  Morris  Turner,  two 
men  in  the  employ  of  John  Fraser,  a  Lancaster  County,  Penn- 
sylvania, trader,  who  had  bought  more  skins  from  Miami  In- 
dians than  their  horses  could  carry,  were  returning  from  Logs- 
town  for  a  second  load,  when  seven  Indians  came  into  their  camp 
one  evening  a  little  after  sunset.  They  asked  for  victuals, 
and  when  meat  was  given  them,  dressed  and  ate  it  in  friendly 
fashion.  After  their  appetites  were  satisfied  they  began  ex- 
amining the  traders'  guns,  apparently  from  curiosity;  one 
picked  up  a  tomahawk,  and  others  asked  for  knives  to  cut  their 
tobacco.  Suddenly  the  two  traders  were  seized  and  securely 
tied.  The  Indians  hurried  their  prisoners  off  toward  Detroit, 
which  at  that  time  contained  about  150  houses,  securely  stock- 
aded. The  prisoners  were  delivered  to  the  commandant,  Sa- 
brevois,  who  gave  to  the  Indians  as  reward  a  10-gallon  keg  of 
brandy  and  100  pounds  of  tobacco.  Kilgore  and  Turner  were 
put  to  work  with  a  farmer,  hoeing  his  corn  and  cutting  his 
wheat.  The  Indians  frequently  came  to  see  them  and  exult 


THE  NIAGARA-OHIO  ROUTE  365 

over  them,  taunting  thrm  and  calling  them  (logs,  and  declar- 
ing that  they  were  going  down  to  the  Wabash  after  more  trad- 
ers. After  three  months  of  this  servitude,  on  the  arrival  of 
a  new  commandant,  apparently  Celoron,  who  assumed  com- 
mand at  Detroit,  February  15,  1751,  our  traders  were  sent 
down  Lake  Erie  to  Fort  Niagara,  where  they  met  Joncaire, 
who  they  styled  "  the  chief  interpreter,"  and  who  was  just  set- 
ting out  on  one  of  his  countless  journeys  to  carry  a  present 
to  the  Indians  of  the  Ohio  country.  The  prisoners  saw  his 
goods  spread  out  on  the  river  hank,  and  estimated  them  worth 
£1,500.  Here  too  they  learned  that  a  reward  of  £1,000  was 
offered  for  the  scalps  of  George  Croghan  and  James  Lowry, 
whom  the  French  justly  regarded  as  the  most  influential  of  the 
Pennsylvania  traders.  When  the  French  at  Niagara  under- 
took to  transfer  Kilgore  and  Turner  to  Montreal,  while  fol- 
lowing the  shore  of  Lake  Ontario,  the  prisoners  made  their 
escape.8 

It  was  in  reference  to  these  fugitives  that  Colonel  Johnson 
wrote  to  Governor  Clinton,  in  September,  1750,  saying  that  two 
Englishmen  had  come  to  him  "  in  a  miserable  naked  condition." 
He  states  the  circumstances  of  their  capture  and  escape,  sub- 
stantially as  above  given  ;  and  adds :  "  They  say  the  French  are 
making  all  preparation  possible  against  the  Spring  to  destroy 
some  nations  of  Indians,  very  steadfast  in  our  interest.  .  .  . 
They  met  in  the  lake  10  or  12  large  battoes,  laden  with  stores 
and  ammunition  for  said  purpose,  with  whom  were  several  of- 
ficers, in  particular  two  sons  of  one  of  their  Governors,  whom 
I  suppose  to  be  Monsr.  Longquile's  sons."  He  was  indignant 
at  hearing  the  French  had  offered  prizes  to  any  Indians  who 
would  "  take  or  destroy  "  Croghan  and  Lawrie,  and  says  of 
Joncaire  —  probably  Philippe  Thomas  — "  I  wish  he  may  meet 
his  proper  desert."  Joncaire  this  summer  had  had  the  temer- 
ity to  appear  at  Oswego,  in  the  vicinity  of  which  post 
he  had  distributed  valuable  goods  to  the  Indians.9  His  brother 

s  Summarized  from  the  depositions  of  Kilgore  and  Turner.  Fee  Wal- 
ton's "Conrad  Weiscr  and  the  Indian  Policy  of  Colonial  Pennsylvania," 
pp.  JU-JU. 

1J  "  A  rent   Stephens   the   interpreter,  who  oame   lately    from   Oswepo,  saw 


366  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

Chabcrt  was  at  this  time  similarly  occupied  on  the  Ohio,  where 
he  sought  to  impress  upon  the  none  too  credulous  red  men  that 
the  French  wished  to  establish  trading  posts  in  the  region  for 
the  convenience  of  the  tribes,  "  to  supply  what  goods  they 
needed,  so  they  would  not  have  to  go  so  far  to  market  " —  in 
other  words,  to  Oswego. 

When  Johnson  heard  of  this  he  reminded  the  Indians  that 
they  could  get  goods  cheaper  from  Philadelphia,  than  from 
the  French. 

Late  in  1750  Chabert  loaded  five  canoes  with  Indian  goods, 
at  Fort  Niagara,  and  started  for  the  Allegheny  Valley.  The 
need  of  a  protected  storehouse  and  depot  of  supplies  above  the 
Falls  was  much  felt,  and  as  we  shall  presently  see,  was  soon  to 
be  supplied.  He  crossed  the  eastern  end  of  Lake  Erie  and 
made  his  way  by  Chautauqua  and  the  Conewango,  into  the 
beautiful  valley  Avhich  to  the  French  of  that  day  was  always 
"  la  belle  riviere,"  and,  to  the  English,  by  an  absurd  adapta- 
tion, the  "  Bell "  River.10  From  the  junction  of  the  Cone- 
wango to  the  junction  of  Le  Boeuf  Creek  —  from  Warren  to 
Franklin  —  it  wound  between  heavily  forested  hills,  with  shal- 
lows and  riffles,  and  many  a  willow-grown  island,  but  with  ever- 
deepening  channel.  As  the  valley  widened  and  the  hills  re- 
ceded, the  flat  bottom-lands,  thick  with  rank  growth,  made 
lurking-places  for  many  possible  foes.  The  river  was  a  nat- 
ural highway,  but  it  was  never  a  secure  road.  No  flotilla  of 
canoes  could  pass  without  detection  and  the  risk  of  a  volley  at 
a  hundred  points.  Wilderness  travel  presented  problems 
which  would  overwhelm  the  average  modern ;  but  they  also  de- 
veloped character,  and  Chabert,  who  knew  the  wilderness  and 
its  signs  even  as  the  red  man  himself,  was  as  thoroughly  at 
home  in  these  journeys  as  the  wild  denizens  of  the  woods  them- 
selves. The  wildcat  and  lynx  that  lay  crouched  and  watch- 
ful on  the  boughs  beneath  which  his  canoe  glided,  were  not 
more  wary  than  he. 

and  spoke  with  Jean  Ceur,  who  made  no  Scruple  to  tell  the  Intent  of  his 
Journey." — Gov.  Clinton  to  Goi\  Hamilton,  Sept.  3,  1750. 

T'One  of  the  Colonial  newspapers  reported  the  taking  of  Fort  Duquesne 
as  "  Fort  Du  Guerne  on  the  Fine  River." 


THE  NIAGARA-OHIO  ROUTE  367 

It  was  a  populous  valley,  and  at  its  many  wigwam  or  bark 
hut  villages,  he  beached  his  canoes,  held  palavers  with  the  chiefs, 
and  dispensed  his  goods.  Further  down  the  river,  at  old  Logs- 
town,  an  Iroquois  war  party  reported  to  Andrew  Montour 
and  George  Croghan  that  they  had  seen  "  John  Caur  [Jon- 
cairc]  about  150  miles  up  the  river  at  an  Indian  town,  where 
he  intends  to  build  a  fort,  if  he  can  get  liberty  from  the  Ohio 
Indians."  Chabert  sent  two  messengers  to  Logstown,  de- 
siring the  Indians  to  "  clear  the  road  for  him,"  that  is,  grant 
him  a  favorable  reception ;  "  but,"  wrote  Croghan,  "  they  have 
had  so  little  respect  for  his  message  that  they  have  not  thought 
it  worth  while  to  send  him  an  answer  as  yet."  12 

It  was  not  all  smooth  sailing  for  Chabert,  and  more  than 
once  his  life  was  in  danger.  The  next  year  he  tried  again,  but 
it  was  like  running  into  a  hornets'  nest.  With  a  small  Indian 
escort  and  one  Frenchman  he  appeared  at  Logstown  where 
Croghan  and  other  representatives  of  Pennsylvania  were  in 
council  with  the  Indians.  It  was  a  large  gathering  attended 
by  head  men  of  the  Six  Nations,  whose  jurisdiction  included 
the  Upper  Ohio  Valley,  and  large  numbers  from  the  subservient 
tribes,  the  Dclawares,  Shawanesc,  Wyandots  and  Twightwees, 
these  last  a  branch  of  the  Miamis.  Croghan,  with  the  English 
goods,  was  cordially  received.  With  great  temerity,  knowing 
that  all  sentiment  was  against  him,  Chabert  called  a  council 
and  asked  his  "  children  "  to  reply  to  the  speech  Celoron  13 
had  made  to  them  when  he  went  down  the  river  two  years  be- 
fore, and  asked  them  to  turn  away  the  English  traders. 

One  of  the  Six  Nations'  chiefs  immediately  replied  to  Cha- 
bert, with  a  good  deal  of  heat ;  refusing  to  call  the  French 
Governor  "  Father,"  or  themselves  his  "  children,"  which  was 
a  great  affront.  Chabert  was  told  that  the  English  were  the 
brothers  of  the  Six  Nations,  and  that  they  should  stay  in  the 
Ohio  Vallev ;  and  they  threw  back  at  him  the  wampum  belt 
he  had  given  them;  which  was  the  greatest  insult  they  could 
offer,  short  of  personal  violence. 

11  Croghan  to  Gov.  Jas.  Hamilton,  Dec.  Hi,  1750. 

12/6. 

13  Crofrhnn's    journal  has  it  "Monsieur  Shularonc." 


368  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

This  was  on  May  21st.  On  the  25th,  Chabert  had  a  con- 
ference with  Croghan  in  which  —  according  to  the  latter's 
version  —  he  begged  Croghan  to  excuse  him  "  and  not  think 
hard  of  him  for  the  speeches  he  made  to  the  Indians,  request- 
ing them  to  turn  the  English  traders  away ;  for  it  was  the 
Governor  of  Canada  ordered  him  and  he  was  obliged  to  obey 
him,  although  he  was  very  sensible  which  way  the  Indians  would 
receive  them,  for  he  was  sure  the  French  could  not  accomplish 
their  design  with  the  Six  Nations,  without  it  could  be  done  by 
force;  which,  he  said,  he  believed  they  would  find  to  be  as  diffi- 
cult as  the  method  they  had  just  tried,  and  would  meet  with 
the  like  success."  For  one  who  had  shown  Chabert's  resolu- 
tion, this  was  a  surprisingly  indiscreet  admission;  but  it  will 
be  kept  in  mind  that  his  adversary  was  the  reporter. 

The  end  of  the  episode  was  not  yet.  On  May  28th,  a  treaty 
with  all  these  tribes  was  held  at  Logstown.  There  were  pres- 
ent ten  English  traders,  with  their  loads  of  goods ;  Andrew 
Montour,  interpreter  for  the  English,  and  George  Croghan, 
chief  spokesman  for  the  Province  of  Pennsylvania.  Chabert 
was  also  present.  After  much  speech-making,  and  a  fulsome 
exchange  of  compliments  between  Indians  and  English,  one  of 
the  Six  Nations'  chiefs  singled  out  Chabert,  and  speaking  "  very 
quick  and  sharp,  with  the  air  of  a  warrior,"  harangued  him 
(according  to  a  version  preserved  in  the  Pennsylvania  records) 
as  follows : 

How  comes  it  that  you  have  broken  the  general  peace?  Is  it  not 
three  years  since  you,  as  well  as  our  brothers  the  English,  told  us 
that  there  was  peace  between  the  English  and  the  French?  And 
how  comes  it  that  you  have  taken  our  brothers  as  prisoners  on  our 
lands?  Is  it  not  our  land?  (stamping  on  the  ground  and  putting 
his  finger  to  Chahert-Joncaire's  nose.)  What  right  has  Onontio  to 
our  lands?  I  desire  you  may  go  home  directly,  off  from  our  lands, 
and  tell  Onontio  to  send  us  word  immediately,  what  was  his  reason 
for  using  our  brothers  so;  or  what  he  means  by  such  proceedings, 
that  we  may  know  what  to  do,  for  I  can  assure  Onontio  that  we,  the 
Six  Nations,  will  not  take  such  usage.  You  hear  what  I  say? 
These  are  the  sentiments  of  our  nations.  Tell  it  to  Onontio,  that 
that  is  what  the  Six  Nations  said  to  you. 


THE  NIAGARA-OHIO  ROUTE  369 

And  as  if  this  scolding  were  not  enough,  they  gave  Chabert 
four  strings  of  black  wampum,  which  meant  deadly  enmity. 
Chabert  retraced  his  way  to  the  Niagara.  For  the  moment,  he 
was  checkmated;  but  that  he  had  no  thought  of  giving  up  the 
game,  subsequent  events  will  show. 

In  1750  there  assumed  command  at  Fort  Niagara  a  young 
man  of  marked  ability  and  distinguished  lineage  —  Daniel 
Hyacinth  Mary  Lienard  de  Bcaujeu,  scion  of  a  family  which 
figures  in  French  history  from  the  Eleventh  century,  and  which 
has  left  its  name  to  the  Beaujolois,  one  of  the  divisions  of  the 
ancient  province  of  Dauphine.  Living  members  of  this  line 
point  with  warrantable  pride  to  Guichard,  Sire  de  Beaujeu, 
who  in  1210  was  sent  by  Philip  Augustus  as  his  ambassador  to 
Pope  Innocent  III;  to  Humbert  V,  Sire  de  Beaujeu,  Constable 
of  France,  who  attended  the  coronation  of  Baudouin  II  as  Em- 
peror at  Constantinople,  and  to  William  de  Beaujeu,  Grand 
Master  of  the  Templars  in  1288,  killed  at  the  siege  of  Antioch 
in  1290.  One  of  the  name  fought  under  St.  Louis  in  Egypt; 
another  fell  at  the  siege  of  Montbart  in  1590;  another,  Paul 
Anthony  Quiqueran  de  Beaujeu,  is  famous  for  his  daring  es- 
cape from  prison  in  Constantinople  in  the  Seventeenth  cen- 
tury. 

About  the  close  of  the  Seventeenth  century  one  of  the  family, 
Louis  Lienard  de  Beaujeu,  is  found  serving  his  king  in  Canada, 
where  he  received  the  Cross  of  St.  Louis,  married,  was  Mayor  of 
Quebec  in  1733,  and  held  grants  of  land  on  Chambly  River. 
His  second  son,  Daniel  Hyacinth  Mary,  born  at  Montreal, 
August  19,  1711,  entered  early  upon  military  life.  In  1748, 
at  the  age  of  37,  he  was  a  captain  of  the  Marine,  and  in  this 
capacity  attended  the  great  conference  at  the  Castle  of  St. 
Louis,  in  Quebec,  between  the  Marquis  dc  La  Galissonierc  and 
deputies  from  the  Six  Nations.  It  was  not  the  least  notable 
of  the  many  conferences  held  in  the  grand  council  chamber  of 
the  castle,  between  the  cultured  and  court-wise  officers  of 
France  and  the  painted  and  befeathercd  sons  of  the  forest. 

On  this  second  of  November  the  council  chamber  was 
thronged.  Besides  the  Commander,  and  Bigot  the  Intcndant 
General,  de  Vaudreuil,  lieutenant-governor  of  the  town  and 


370  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

castle  of  Quebec,  Gaspard  Chaussegros  de  Lery,  the  royal  chief 
engineer,  Captain  de  Beaujeu  and  "  a  great  number  of  per- 
sons of  distinction,"  were  some  eighty  chiefs  and  warriors  of 
the  Six  Nations ;  while  fraternizing  alike  with  their  brother 
officers  in  the  royal  service  and  with  the  red  lords  of  the  wilder- 
ness were  Captain  de  la  Corne  and  others  who  could  serve  as 
interpreters,  notably  Philippe  Thomas  de  Joncaire,  in  cordial 
if  not  domestic  relations  with  his  friends  the  Senecas  from  the 
Genesee  and  the  Niagara.  As  for  the  conference,  thus  held 
with  much  formal  speaking,  it  was  the  same  old  strife  for  Iro- 
quois  allegiance  with  which  the  reader  has  already  become  fa- 
miliar, if  not  weary.  La  Galissoniere  asked  if  the  "  cantons  " 
had  become  subjects  of  the  English;  read  to  the  chiefs  letters 
of  Governors  Clinton  and  Shirley,  claiming  that  the  Six  Na- 
tions were  "  vassals  of  the  Crown  of  England,  and  that  you 
are  bound  to  go  to  war  for  the  English,  whenever  they  order  you 
so  to  do."  It  was  impossible  that  these  Iroquois  should  ad- 
mit that  they  were  vassals  to  anybody ;  and  they  made  the  cus- 
tomary reply,  "  That  they  had  not  ceded  to  any  one  their 
lands,  which  they  hold  only  of  Heaven,"  and  that  they  desired 
to  remain  at  peace  with  both  French  and  English.  With  this 
equivocal  assurance  La  Galissoniere  had  to  rest  content.  He 
had  the  speeches  and  answer  formally  transcribed  into  an  acte, 
signed  by  all  his  officers  present,  among  the  others  Captain  de 
Beaujeu,  and  by  the  uncouth  totem  marks  of  the  Six  Nations.14 

Very  soon  after  this  conference  de  Beaujeu  appears  to  have 
been  assigned  to  the  command  at  Detroit ;  15  but  we  next  find 
him  at  Niagara,  where  the  service  called  for  a  man  able  to 
cope  with  the  English  in  holding  on  both  to  the  friendship  of 
the  Iroquois  and  the  fur  trade. 

An  anecdote  is  preserved  which  illustrates  his  uprightness 
and  strength  of  character  in  dealing  with  the  aborigines. 

While  he  was  in  command  at  Niagara  serious  thefts  were 
made  from  the  canoes  of  the  sieurs  Gaucher-Gamelin  and  Godc- 
froy.  The  thief,  a  Seneca,  was  detected,  seized  and  locked  up 

i*  X.  Y.  Col.  Docs.  X,  1SG-188. 

"Documents  of  Hon.  M.  Saveuse  de  Beaujeu,  cited  by  John  Gilmary 
Shea,  Pa.  May.  Hint.,  vol  VIII,  p.  123. 


THE  NIAGARA-OHIO  ROUTE  371 

in  the  dungeon  of  the  fort.  In  great  anger,  a  company  of 
Seneca  chiefs  came  to  the  fort,  demanding  instant  release  of 
the  culprit,  and  menacing  dc  Beaujeu  with  all  the  "  vengeances 
of  their  nation."  The  sturdy  officer  replied  to  their  howls  and 
threats: 

"  I  am  surprised,  my  children,  at  the  language  you  use.  I 
think  that  you  ought  to  ask  pardon  for  TheouSayane,  ohliging 
you  to  make  him  atone  for  his  fault,  or,  in  his  failure,  to  atone 
for  it  yourselves.  As  it  is  late,  and  the  gates  of  the  fort  must 
be  closed,  I  give  you  the  night  to  think  over  what  you  will  do. 
As  for  me,  I  shall  do  only  what  I  ought  to  do.  As  for  your 
threats,  I  do  not  fear  them.  I  wait  for  you  and  your  fol- 
lowers." 

The  next  day  the  Seneca  deputies  came  again  to  the  fort, 
in  changed  mood.  They  admitted  that  they  had  not  shown 
good  sense,  but  declared  that  their  incarcerated  brother  was 
unable  to  make  restitution,  and  that,  they  themselves  could  not 
do  it  for  him.  De  Beaujeu  replied: 

"  My  children,  in  punishing  your  brother  I  have  wished  to 
keep  him  from  other  follies,  and  to  prevent  others  from  imi- 
tating him.  This  house  is  a  house  of  peace,  and  I  am  resolved 
that  it  continues  to  be.  The  canoes  of  Gaucher-Gamelin  and 
Godefroy  have  been  stolen.  They  must  be  returned,  or  paid 
for.  That  is  just  and  reasonable.  Until  this  affair  is  set- 
tled, do  not  expect  any  further  favors  from  me." 

Whether  impressed  by  the  high  justice  of  de  Beaujcu's 
position,  as  the  old  record  has  it,  or  whether  just  making  the 
best  of  the  situation,  the  "  great  chief  "  Annechotcka  prom- 
ised to  make  reparation,  and  presumably  did,  for  the  inci- 
dent concludes:  "  Then  M.  de  Beaujeu,  satisfied,  had  refresh- 
ments served  to  all  the  Indians  and  sent  them  back  to  their 
cabins,  well  pleased." 

De  Beaujeu  had  been  especially  instructed  to  pursue  a  lib- 
eral and  vigorous  policy  in  his  traffic  with  the  Indians  who  came 
down  with  furs  from  the  westward.  Report  of  this  reached  the 
alert  Colonel  William  Johnson,  at  Mount  Johnson  on  the  Mo- 
hawk, who  lost  no  time  in  writing  to  Governor  Clinton,  under 
date  of  September  14,  1750: 


372  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

"  Mr.  Kalm,  a  Swedish  gentleman  (who  was  lately  at  my 
house  in  his  return  from  Niagara)  said  he  assured  me  he  read 
a  letter  from  the  Lord  Intendant  of  Quebec  to  the  commanding 
officer  at  Niagara,  dated  some  time  this  last  summer,  wherein  he 
desires  him  to  supply  all  Indians  (who  pass  in  their  way  to  Os- 
wego)  with  goods,  at  such  a  Price  as  may  induce  them  to 
trade  there  to  gain  which  point  at  the  time,  he  says,  the  Lord 
Intendant  in  his  letter  says,  he  will  not  regard  the  loss  of  20 
or  30,000  Livres  a  year  to  the  Crown.  He  also  allows  said 
officer  to  supply  said  Indians  with  what  quantity  of  brandy  or 
rum  they  may  want,  which  never  was  allowed  before,  for  their 
Preists  [sz'c]  were  always  against  selling  them  liquor,  but  find- 
ing liquor  to  be  one  of  the  principal  articles,  they  trade  for, 
they  are  determined  to  let  them  have  it  as  they  would  other- 
wise go  to  Oswego  for  it.  I  take  it  their  view  in  this,  is  as 
much  if  not  more,  for  preventing  any  communication  between 
us  and  said  Indians,  as  for  engrossing  the  trade,  and  in  my 
opinion  they  could  not  have  fallen  upon  a  better  scheme  to  ac- 
complish. Said  Mr.  Kalm  told  me  he  heard  the  officers  at  Ni- 
agara say  that  by  their  letters  from  Canada,  they  had  an  ac- 
count that  Oswego  would  be  given  up  to  them  as  an  equivalent 
for  the  island  Tobago." 

Colonel  Johnson's  guest  and  informant  was  Peter  Kalm,  a 
Swedish  botanist  of  distinction.  His  three-volume  narrative  of 
his  travels  in  America,  at  least  in  the  English  translation,  con- 
tain, singularly  enough,  no  account  of  his  journey  to  Niagara 
Falls ;  but  a  most  interesting  record  of  that  visit,  is  afforded 
in  a  letter  which  Mr.  Kalm  wrote  from  Albany,  September  2, 
1750,  to  a  friend  in  Philadelphia  —  undoubtedly  Bartram  the 
botanist.  In  this  letter  Mr.  Kalm  makes  no  mention  of  his 
visit  at  Johnson  Hall,  nor  does  he  tell  how  he  came  to  be  aware 
of  instructions  to  the  commandant  at  Niagara  who  had  recently 
been  his  host.  Whether  those  facts,  which  as  we  have  seen,  he 
ungenerously  disclosed  so  soon  to  the  enemy,  were  surrepti- 
tiously acquired  by  his  scientific  mind,  in  some  unwatchcd  nook 
of  the  old  mess  house  at  Niagara,  or  whether  de  Bcaujeii  him- 
self showed  the  letter,  in  an  after-dinner  hour  of  good  feeling 
and  boastfulness,  is  not  now  essential. 


THE  NIAGARA-OHIO  ROUTE  373 

Available  documents  arc  silent  regarding  the  rest  of  de 
Beaujeu's  service  at  Niagara.  That  it  was  acceptable  may  be 
inferred  from  the  fact  that  before  entering  upon  the  next 
sphere  of  activity  in  which  we  know  him,  he  received  that  coveted 
reward  of  the  French  soldier  in  America,  the  Cross  of  St.  Louis. 
In  1755  he  was  sent  to  Fort  Duquesne,  where  he  succeeded  M. 
de  Contrecocur,  and  where,  on  that  memorable  9th  of  July,  in 
the  defeat  of  Braddock's  army,  he  won  glory  and  a  grave  —  a 
grave  now  unknown  and  unmarked.  That  he  was  in  chief  com- 
mand of  the  French  forces  which  defeated  Braddock,  and  that 
to  him  belongs  the  credit  for  that  victory,  has  been  a  subject 
of  some  contention.  Dr.  John  Gilmary  Shea,  apparently  rest- 
ing his  case  chiefly  on  the  "  Hcyistre  da  Fort  Duqucsnc,"  be- 
stows all  the  laurels  for  this  defeat  of  Braddock  and  Washing- 
ton upon  de  Bcaujeu,  of  whom  he  enthusiastically  writes  that 
"  not  one  even  of  his  gallant  race  ever  achieved  so  great  a 
success,  or  turned  a  desperate  cause  into  a  triumphant  defeat 
of  so  superior  a  force."  The  French  official  reports  of  the  bat- 
tle are  of  different  tenor,  speaking  of  Contrecojur  as  command- 
ant of  Fort  Duquesne,  and  as  making  the  arrangements  for  the 
engagement ;  and  of  Captain  Dumas  as  having  saved  the  day, 
after  the  death  of  Beaujeu.16  The  latter  was  carried  back 
into  the  fort  and  on  July  12th  was  buried  in  the  garrison 
cemetery,  all  traces  of  which  long  since  disappeared. 

A  further  word  should  perhaps  be  devoted  to  Peter  Kalm. 
Although  he  had  fortified  himself  with  passes  and  permits,  he 
was  never  quite  free  from  French  suspicion.  Cadwallader  Col- 
den  introduced  him  to  Colonel  Johnson  as  "  a  Sweedish  Gent'n 
.  .  .  travilling  in  order  to  make  discoveries  in  Botany  and 
Astronomy."  He  was  recommended  to  La  Jonquiere,  some- 
what more  accurately,  as  desiring  to  visit  Canada  and  the 
Niagara,  "  to  make  botanical  researches."  The  King  directed 
his  officers  to  aid  him,  but  at  the  same  time  to  see  that  he 
did  nothing  to  interfere  with  trade.  Kalm,  however,  diligently 

in  "  Such  a  victory,  so  entirely  unexpected,  seeinir  the  inequality  of  the 
forces,  is  the  fruit  of  Moils.  Dumas'  experience,  and  of  the  activity  and  valor 
of  the  officers  under  his  command." —  X.  Y.  Col.  Docs.  X,  301.  Sec  a  1. -to  X, 
338,  3SJ,  110,  ,5JS,  [)H. 


374  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

gathered  information  regarding  the  fur  trade  at  Niagara,  which 
he  published  at  his  earliest  opportunity.17 

The  need  of  a  fortified  trading  post  on  the  Niagara  River 
above  the  falls,  at  the  head  of  the  portage,  was  more  and  more 
felt  as  travel  increased  and  expeditions  multiplied.  The  great 
convoy  of  1748,  and  the  still  greater  one  of  1749,  with  the 
added  labor,  confusion  and  loss  incident  to  the  passing  of 
Celeron's  force,  hastened  decisive  action;  but  when,  in  the 
spring  and  early  summer  of  1750,  220  western  canoes,  laden 
with  a  thousand  packets  of  furs,  swept  down  the  river,  ignored 
Fort  Niagara,  and  hastened  on  to  make  their  trade  at  Oswego, 
it  was  recognized  by  high  and  low  that  if  France  was  to  hold 
this  trade  at  all,  she  must  strengthen  herself  on  the  Niagara. 

As  usual  with  achievements  in  which  many  are  concerned, 
several  claim  credit  for  this  accomplishment,  none  more  justly 
than  Chabert.  It  was  from  representations  made  by  him,  and 
by  de  Beaujeu,  commandant  at  Fort  Niagara,  that  the  Gov- 
ernor, La  Jonquiere,  and  Bigot  the  Intendant,  in  their  official 
communications  to  the  Minister,  told  of  its  need,  and  then  of 
its  construction,  as  though  achieved  through  their  own  fore- 
sight and  zeal. 

The  year  1750  was  an  important  one  in  Chabert's  career. 
From  this  time  on  the  part  he  plays  in  the  drama  of  the  Niagara 
grows  in  importance ;  nor  can  we  better  show  the  conditions 
of  the  time  than  by  giving  him,  for  a  little,  the  center  of  the 
stage. 

In  the  year  named,  he  was  charged  with  a  delicate  mission 

—  the  escort  of  a  party  of  chiefs  from  the  Iroquois  tribes,  to 

Montreal,  "  to  make  satisfaction  to  the  Abcnakquis,  of  whom 

it  was  said  they  had  killed  three  men."     Chabert  gives  it  to  be 

i?  A  French  translation  of  his  Journal  is  contained  in  the  Mdmoires  de  la 
Socii'tf'  Hinforiquc  do  Montreal,  1880.  Nothing  about  his  Niagara  visit  is 
to  he  found  in  his  well-known  "  Travels,"  of  which  a  3-vol.  English  transla- 
tion by  Forster  appeared  1770-71.  It  was  Nairn's  purpose  to  include 
Niagara  in  a  continuation  of  the  "  Travels/'  which  never  appeared.  The 
account  of  his  Niagara  visit  was  published  with  John  Bartram's  "Observa- 
tions," in  London,  17/51,  and  has  been  reprinted.  An  English  translation 
of  the  Dedication  and  Preface  to  his  "Travels"  (Stockholm.  17,5.3),  by  Adam 
J.  Strohni,  is  in  the  Penn.  Mag.  of  History  and  Biography,  vol.  XXXVI 
(1912). 


THE  NIAGARA-OHIO  ROUTE  '.ftr, 

understood  that  the  desired  end  was  accomplished,  though  very 
difficult  "  for  proud,  fierce  men  whom  a  single  threat  threw  into 
a  rage." 

It  was  during  this  visit  to  Montreal  that  the  new  establish- 
ment above  the  falls  was  determined  upon,  and  Chabert  was 
commissioned  to  build  and  command  it.  It  was  characteristic 
that  in  returning  to  Niagara,  he  should  come  by  way  of  Os- 
wego,  and  in  the  stronghold  of  his  adversaries  boast  of  what 
was  to  be  done. 

All,  however,  was  not  left  to  the  exuberant  Chabert.  De 
Beaujeu,  the  distinguished  young  officer  in  command  that  sea- 
son at  Niagara,  was  supreme  in  authority  on  this  frontier. 
He  it  was  who  selected  the  site  for  the  new  post,  which  La 
Jonquiere,  although  he  persisted  in  writing  of  it  as  "  below  the 
portage,"  assured  the  Minister  was  "  very  advantageous." 
"  I  gave  orders,"  he  wrote,  "  that  no  time  be  lost  to  put  it  in 
good  condition,  feeling  sure  that  the  English,  angered  by  the 
harm  which  it  will  do  to  their  Oswego  trade,  would  stir  up  the 
Five  Nations  to  oppose  it."  1S 

Ue  Beaujeu,  who  soon  departed  for  Detroit,  left  his  mark 
on  the  Niagara.  He  opened  a  new  and  shorter  road  on  the 
portage,  easier  for  the  carts,  and,  according  to  La  Jonquiere, 
"  enabling  the  carters  to  avoid  the  drunkards  commonly  found 
in  the  old  road."  He  explains  that  de  Beaujeu  had  done  a 
good  deal  more  than  was  ordered ;  but  this  officer  departing  for 
Detroit,  "  I  reiterated  my  intentions  to  the  officer  who  com- 
manded at  Niagara  in  his  absence;  that  is  to  say,  that  all 
that  was  needed  was  a  trading  house  where  the  clerk  could 
lodge,  a  room  for  ten  soldiers  who  would  serve  as  guard,  and  a 
little  room  for  the  commandant,  the  whole  surrounded  with 
a  palisade,  somewhat  flanked.  I  charged  above  all  things  that 
care  he  takrn  to  avoid  large  expense,  and  to  hasten  the 
work. 

"  I  confided  its  care  to  the  Sieur  Joncaire  de  Clauzon,  en- 
sign of  infantry,  chief  interpreter  in  the  Iroquois  tongue." 

This  is  one  of  the  few  instances  in  the  official  communica- 

t&La.  Jonquiere  to  the  Minister,  Quebec,  Oct.  fi,  1751.  Tn  this  letter  he 
cites  correspondence  of  the  year  before,  and  reviews  what  had  been  done. 


376  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

tions  in  which  the  "  Sieur  de  Chabert  et  de  Clausonne  "  is  desig- 
nated by  the  second  of  his  seigneurial  titles. 

Before  undertaking  actual  construction,  Chabert  addressed 
himself  to  the  more  difficult  task  of  gaining  consent  of  the 
Iroquois.  The  Five  Nations,  he  says,  were  opposed  to  it, 
"  nevertheless  the  undertaking  was  confided  to  me  in  the  hope 
that  I  would  have  the  credit  of  making  them  approve  of  it, 
even  as  my  father  had  had  the  credit  of  building  Fort  Ni- 
agara on  their  land,  notwithstanding  their  unwillingness  and 
the  lively  opposition  of  the  English." 

Although  self-interest  inclined  the  Senecas  to  consent,  they 
held  off.  A  greater  depot  of  goods  at  so  convenient  and 
much  frequented  a  spot,  meant  much  to  them.  Nevertheless, 
intimate  as  were  his  relations  with  them,  Chabert  had  to  use 
his  most  persuasive  phrases  to  gain  their  consent.  "  Children," 
he  said,  "  your  father  (the  French  Governor),  having  out  of  a 
tender  regard  for  you,  considered  the  great  difficulties  you 
labor  under,  by  carrying  your  goods,  canoes,  etc.,  over  the 
great  carrying-place  of  Niagara,  has  desired  me  to  acquaint 
3'ou  that  in  order  to  ease  you  all  of  so  much  trouble  for  the 
future,  he  is  resolved  to  build  a  house  at  the  other  end  of  the 
carrying-place,  which  he  will  furnish  with  all  the  necessaries 
for  your  use."  The  speech  was  followed  by  gifts.  The  In- 
dians accepted  the  gifts,  but  said  they  would  consider  the  re- 
quest. The  Onondagas,  supreme  in  influence,  were  also  reluc- 
tant. 

La  Jonquicre  ordered  further  overtures  to  be  made.  Three 
strings  of  wampum  were  sent  to  the  principal  villages  of  the 
Five  Nations,  and  a  summons  to  a  "  little  feast,"  at  which 
resort  was  had  to  the  usually  effective  argument.  "  Several 
pots  of  wine "  having  been  consumed,  "  the  savages  replied 
that  the}-  consented  with  pleasure  to  this  establishment."  10 

Chabert  promptly  began  work.  Plank  and  joists  were  sent 
by  dc  Vassan,  from  Fort  Frontenac,  but  the  plank  giving 
out,  bark  was  used  for  roofing.  Construction  occupied  three 
months,  and  the  cost  was  15,000  livres.  There  was  no  com- 

10  La  Jonqui6rc  to  the  Minister,  Oct.  6,  1751. 


THE  NIAGARA-OHIO  ROUTE  377 

plaint  of  waste  or  extravagance  in  connection  with  it.  A  year 
or  so  later  the  President  of  the  Navy  Board  wrote  to  La  Jon- 
quiere's  successor:  "The  establishments  of  Toronto  and  the 
Portage  of  Niagara  .  .  .  were  approved  last  year.  ...  I  ap- 
prove what  has  been  done  for  the  execution."  20 

This  new  post,  the  building  of  which  made  well  nigh  as  much 
stir,  among  both  English  and  Indians,  as  had  the  building  of 
Fort  Niagara  24-  years  before,  was  officially  designated  Fort 
Little  Niagara.  It  was  also  styled  Fort  du  Portage,  and  the 
Little  Fort.-1 

As  soon  as  navigation  opened  in  the  spring  of  1751,  two 
canoe-loads  of  trading  goods  were  sent  to  it,  on  the  King's 
account ;  and  on  May  '3d  the  first  barter  with  Indians  was 
held  within  the  enclosure.  It  is  a  date  of  some  note  in  the 
commercial  history  of  America,  for,  though  the  transactions 
were  trifling,  it  marks  a  definite  step  in  the  strife  for  trade 
control,  which  underlies  the  whole  course  of  the  history  we 
here  seek  to  trace. 

"  The  Sieur  de  Joncaire,"  the  Governor  reported,  "  has 
employed  all  his  talents  with  the  savages,  to  stop  their  canoes 
at  this  establishment ;  he  would  have  succeeded  well  if  he  had 
not  lacked  brandy."  One  band  of  Western  Indians  lingered  a 
whole  month  at  the  Little  Fort,  awaiting  the  arrival  at  Fort 
Niagara  of  the  barque  bringing  goods  for  trade.  This  af- 
fair was  finished  July  31st,  with  a  satisfactory  accumulation 
of  furs  for  the  French. 

Fort  Little  Niagara,  as  built  at  this  time,  stood  about  a  mile 
and  a  half  above  the  Falls,  nearly  midway  between  Grass  Island 
and  the  mouth  of  Gill  Creek.  Fort  Schlosser,  subsequently 
built  by  the  British,  was  placed  somewhat  further  down  the 
river.  The  old  French  landing,  the  earliest  known  to  have 
been  used,  was  still  nearer  the  Falls;  in  fact,  just  above  the 
head  of  the  rapids,  below  the  lower  end  of  Grass  Island.  Here 
the  earliest  portage  road  came  to  the  river.  At  the  period 
we  now  write'  of,  the  increase  of  traffic  made  it  advisable  to 

20  Navy  Board  to  Duquesne,  June  l(i,  1?,JJ. 

-i  Lewis  Evans'  map  of  17,5.5  marks  it  "  Fishers  Battery." 


378  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

have  the  point  of  embarkation  further  up  stream,  the  portage 
road  being  continued  along  the  river  bank  to  the  new  loca- 
tion. Later  this  point  was  reached  by  the  new  portage  road  di- 
rect from  the  north.22 

Governor  La  Jonquiere  habitually  referred  to  it  as  "  below 
the  portage,"  obviously  meaning  that  it  was  at  the  south  end; 
but  he  confused  the  officials  of  the  Navy  Board  in  Paris,  who 
wrote  that  it  should  be  "  at  the  head  of  the  Niagara  portage  " 
—  where  indeed  it  was  —  adding :  "  By  letter  of  La  Jonquiere, 
October  6th,  it  appears  they  have  put  it  below  the  portage,  a 
mistake  for  many  reasons."  23 

The  head  of  the  portage  was  a  populous  vicinity.  In  the 
year  that  Little  Niagara  was  built  Peter  Kalm  the  Swedish 
naturalist  visited  it  and  reported  that  some  200  Senecas  then 
lived  "  at  the  carrying-place,  who  were  employed  in  carrying 
on  their  backs  over  the  portage,  packs  of  bear  and  deer  skins  " 
at  20  pence  a  pack.  It  was  at  the  portage  that  the  Indian  of 
the  region  first  learned  to  labor  for  pay.  The  ascent  of  the 
escarpment  above  the  Lewiston  level  was  so  arduous  that  the 
Senecas  called  it  Duh'-jih-heh-oh,  meaning  to  walk  on  all  fours, 
that  being  the  attitude  of  one  climbing  the  steep  path  with  a 
pack  on  his  back.24 

Chabert  in  his  memoir  has  a  reference  to  "  the  cables  "  used 
at  the  foot  of  the  portage,  thus  establishing  the  fact  that  the 
French  used  some  labor-saving  contrivance,  probably  a  hoist 
worked  by  a  windlass,  to  raise  packages  to  the  heights  above 
Lewiston.  After  the  English  were  in  possession,  Captain  John 

22 "  The  French  built  a  sawmill  at  the  Falls,  and  cleared  a  few  acres 
of  land  about  the  forts  and  landing  places,  and  on  the  high  river  bank 
opposite  Goat  Island." — Albert  H.  Porter,  "Niagara,"  1875.  Mr.  Porter 
gives  neither  time  nor  place  of  construction,  nor  any  authority  for  his 
statement.  It  is  however,  entitled  to  credence  for  several  reasons.  The 
writer  was  a  son  of  Judge  Augustus  Porter,  who  personally  knew  the  vicinity 
as  early  as  1796,  when  remains  of  French  constructions  were  still  to  be  seen. 
Another  sawmill  was  evidently  set  up  by  the  French  not  far  from  the  mouth 
of  Chippewa  Creek,  for  in  1 761  Sir  William  Johnson  found  there  a  quantity 
of  sawn  lumber.  Our  narrative  shows  that  the  French  carried  a  sawmill 
to  Presqu'  Isle,  to  cut  plank  for  bateaux. 

2-  Navy  Board  to  Duquesne,  June  16,  1752. 

-*  Albert  II.  Porter's  "Historical  Sketch  of  Niagara,"  published  an- 
on vmouslv  about  1876. 


THE  NIAGARA-OHIO  ROUTE  379 

Montresor,  in  1761-,  erected  a  more  efficient  device  for  this 
work.-5 

Fort  Little  Niagara,  as  we  learn  from  a  description  written 
the  month  after  trade  began  there,  was  a  trading  house  (and 
no  doubt  minor  buildings)  surrounded  by  a  triangular  pali- 
sade, "  badly  made,"  "  with  two  kinds  of  bastions  at  the  two 
angles  of  the  side  towards  the  roads  which  lead  to  [Fort]  Ni- 
agara." A  gate  formed  the  third  angle,  on  the  upper  side, 
"  the  whole  contrary  to  rules  of  fortification."  2G 

Very  promptly  Governor  Clinton  had  word  of  it;  and  just 
as  promptly  he  complained  to  the  Governor  General  of  Can- 
ada :  "  I  have  repeated  information  that  some  persons,  pre- 
tending to  act  by  commission  from  your  Excellency,  are  erect- 
ing a  fortified  House  on  the  River  of  Oniagara,  between  Lake 
Erie  and  Cadarchin  Lake,"  a  blundering  designation  of  the 
Niagara-Chautauqua  route ;  but  it  was  Fort  Little  Niagara 
the  Governor  had  heard  of.  He  registered  his  protest  on  the 
old  familiar  ground  of  the  Treaty  of  Utrecht,  and  in  the 
same  letter  protested  against  the  actions  of  the  French  who 
"  detained  in  Prison  in  Irons  near  Oniagara,"  "  six  English- 
men, subjects  of  the  King  my  Master,  who  were  peacefully  pur- 
suing a  Lawful  Trade  with  the  Indians.2' 

In  December,  when  Chabert's  fort  had  been  put  in  state  of 
defense,  the  Cayuga  sachem  Scanaghtradeya  appeared  at 
Mount  Johnson  and  told  what  Chabert  had  done,  above  the 
Falls.  Colonel  Johnson  with  great  show  of  earnestness, 
warned  his  informant  against  the  French  and  their  plans. 
'"  The  only  way,"  he  said,  "  is  to  turn  Jean  Cour  away  at  once 
from  the  Ohio  and  tell  him  the  French  shall  neither  build  there, 

-'•"•  Sec  "  The  Achievements  of  Captain  John  Montresor,"  a  narrative  based 
on  his  journal,  in  Buffalo  Historical  Society  Publications,  Vol.  V. 

-"This  none  too  clear  description  is  the  Abbe  Picquet's,  incidents  of  whose 
visits  at  Fort  Little  Niagara  will  presently  be  given.  No  more  authentic 
description  of  the  place  is  known  to  the  present  writer.  Albert  II.  Porter, 
a  resident  of  Niagara  Falls,  wrote  in  1S7(>:  "It  was  a  wooden  work  sur- 
rounded with  palisades,  with  ditches  and  angles  in  the  usual  form.''  Ac- 
cording to  the  Abbe,  it  was  an  unusual  form.  Mr.  Porter  adds:  ''The  out- 
lines are  still  distinct."  In  the  10  years  since  elapsed,  all  trace  of  them 
has  been  obliterated. 

~~  Clinton  to  the  Marquis  de  la  Jonquiere,  June  1~,  ITol. 


380      AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

nor  at  the  carrying  place  of  Niagara,  nor  have  a  foot  of  land 
more  from  you."  28  But  already  Chabert's  establishment  was 
capable  of  defense  and  the  Indians  were  profiting  by  his  favors. 

Four  English  traders  were  brought  to  Niagara  in  the  spring 
of  1751  to  whose  seizure,  as  much  as  to  any  single  act,  may  be 
ascribed  the  ultimate  conflict  between  France  and  Great 
Britain  in  America.  That  war  was  the  outcome  of  a  rivalry 
which  had  many  centers  of  activity,  but  no  cause  was  more 
far-reaching  than  the  strife  for  the  fur-trade ;  nowhere  did  the 
interests  of  the  two  Powers  clash  more  sharply  than  in  the 
region  between  the  Lakes  and  the  Ohio ;  and  no  incident  of 
that  competition  did  more  to  bring  matters  to  a  climax  than 
the  seizure  of  these  four  men. 

One  of  them  was  Thomas  Bourkc,  23  years  old,  who  had  left 
his  native  town  of  Cork  to  try  fortune  in  the  new  land,  and 
who  called  Lancaster,  Pa.,  his  home.  Another  young  Irish- 
man was  Luke  Irwin  of  Philadelphia,  28  years  old.  With  him 
were  John  Patton  and  Joseph  Fortiner,  the  last-named  a  serv- 
ant. Irwin  described  himself  as  a  "  traveling  merchant." 
These  young  men,  of  an  age  and  temperament  which  laughed  at 
danger  and  were  keen  to  take  risks  for  the  sake  of  profit,  were 
typical  of  a  class  which  followed  a  highly  adventurous  and  pic- 
turesque calling.  Armed  with  a  license  from  Governor  Hamil- 
ton of  Pennsylvania,  they  loaded  their  pack-horses  with  goods, 
substantial  or  tawdry,  which  the  Indians  might  fancy,  and 
following  the  Indian  trails  made  their  way  to  the  villages  on  the 
Allegheny,  the  Ohio  and  its  tributaries.  When  the  French  at 
their  feeble  posts  ordered  them  out  of  the  country,  it  amused 
tlie.se  cunning  Pennsylvanians  and  Virginians  to  pretend  to  com- 
ply, only  to  push  their  adventurous  travels  still  farther,  for 
the  more  remote  the  Indian  village  the  greater  the  harvest  of 
furs  which  they  could  gather  for  their  wares.  Celoron's  futile 
expedition  of  1749  had  been  little  but  a  threat  against  invaders 
of  this  class  ;  but  when  John  Patton  boldly  came  with  his  train 
to  the  very  gate  of  the  fort  of  the  Miamis,  now  Vincennes,  In- 
diana, the  French  commandant,  dc  Villiers,  under  orders  from 

-H  Conference  between  Col.  Johnson  and  a  Cayuga  sachem,  Mt.  Johnson, 
Dec.   4,   17,50. 


THE  NIAGARA-OHIO  ROUTE  381 

Celoron  at  Detroit,  promptly  arrested  him.  A  like  fate  befell 
Rourke  and  his  companions  "  near  the  little  lake  of  Otsander- 
ket,"  i.  c.,  Sandusky.  The  four  worthies  were  brought  down 
Lake  Erie  and  after  a  brief  detention  at  Fort  Niagara,  were 
sent  on  to  Montreal,  where  with  other  prisoners,  June  19th, 
they  underwent  an  examination  by  the  Marquis  de  La  Jon- 
quiere.  Three  of  them  at  least,  Rourke,  Irwin  and  Patton, 
were  sent  to  France  as  prisoners,  and  were  still  held  in  con- 
finement at  Rochclle,  the  following  year,  when  the  Earl  of 
Albemarle,  Rritish  Ambassador  to  France,  interested  him- 
self in  their  behalf,  and  they  were  set  free.20 

There  had  been  many  English  traders  in  the  Ohio  country 
before  Rourke  and  Patton,  and  some  of  them  had  been  roughly 
dealt  with;  but  until  now  no  case  had  really  stirred  the  British 
public.  Now,  however,  the  press  made  much  of  it,  both  in 
America  and  in  England ;  and  from  this  time  on  until  the  war 
is  declared  the  statesman  and  the  pamphleteer  —  especially  the 
latter  • — have  much  to  say  regarding  French  encroachment  on 
the  Ohio. 

At  this  period  Governor  de  Longucuil  and  other  officials 
were  much  concerned  over  the  loss  of  reports  and  dispatches 
from  r'eloron,  commanding  at  Detroit,  and  from  other  posts  as 
well.  These  dispatches  were  addressed  to  de  Lavalterie  at 
Niagara,  and  were  duly  received  by  him.  He  assigned  a  soldier 
from  the  fort  to  take  them  to  Fort  Rouille,  now  Toronto, 
whence  they  would  be  sent  down  to  Quebec.  The  soldier  set 
out  from  Niagara  with  the  precious  documents,  and  was  never 
seen  nor  heard  of  afterwards.  A  Mississaga  Indian  from 
Toronto,  soon  after  coming  in  at  Niagara,  was  closely  ques- 

-"'  Albemarle  to  Holclernesse,  Paris,  Mar.  1,  17.5-2.  There  was  also  corre- 
spondence between  Governor  George  Clinton  and  the  Canadian  Governor, 
La  Jonquicre,  regarding  these  prisoners.  "The  .Mystery  Revealed  "(Lon- 
don, 17,M)),  an  excessively  rare  book,  contains  an  account  of  their  capture 
and  examination  at  Montreal;  but  in  this  and  some  other  accounts  the 
names  are  misspelled  well  nigh  beyond  recognition,  Irwin  becominir 
"  .  \rmvin,"  Bourke,  "Broke."1  and  John  Patton,  "  ( K'orge  Pathon."  The 
Boston  HazeUe,  June  ,>,  17.JI5,  reports  their  return  to  Philadelphia  "with 
Capt.  Hudden,  by  the  solicitation  of  the  British  Ambassador,  who  was  so 
pood  as  to  clothe  them  and  send  them  to  England,  the  French  havinir  stript 
them  naked  and  used  them  hardlv." 


382  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

tioned  but  knew  nothing  of  the  missing  messenger.  Search 
was  made,  but  to  no  purpose.  The  one  thought  was  that  he 
had  either  deserted  or,  more  likely,  been  killed  by  Indians  who 
made  off  with  the  dispatches  to  the  English.  The  loss  of  the 
soldier  may  have  been  regretted,  but  the  official  correspondence 
laments  only  the  loss  of  the  dispatches. 

The  story  of  John  Trotter  illustrates  the  conditions  of  the 
time.  One  night  in  the  summer  of  1752  he  and  a  companion, 
James  McLaughlen,  were  brought  into  Fort  Niagara,  in  irons ; 
and  after  a  few  hours,  were  put  on  board  a  bateau  and  sent 
across  to  Fort  Frontenac,  thence  to  Montreal  and  Quebec. 
It  was  not  until  mid-March,  1754,  that  Trotter's  captivity  and 
wanderings  ceased  at  Philadelphia:  where,  March  22d,  he  told 
his  tale  before  Chief  Justice  William  Allen,  and  swore  to  it, 
and,  as  he  could  not  write,  signed  the  statement  with  his  mark. 

Trotter  was  an  Indian  trader  of  Paxtang  in  the  county  of 
Lancaster,  Pennsylvania,  and  in  the  year  1752  was  28  years  old. 
That  summer,  with  Timothy  Reerdon  as  partner  and  £-100 
worth  of  Indian  goods,  they  made  their  way  to  the  Ohio  coun- 
try. They  traded  at  Atigue,  at  Logstown  and  Weningo 
[Venango]  ;  near  which  place,  August  15th,  "  as  he  was  about 
to  pass  the  river  opposite  to  Weningo,  in  company  with  James 
McLaughlen,  a  hired  servant  of  his,  a  party  of  Frenchmen, 
110,  came  and  seized  them  and  their  horses,  took  away  the 
goods  and  bound  this  deponent  and  the  said  McLaughlen  with 
Indian  hopples,  made  of  wild  hemp,  in  their  arms  and  legs." 
They  were  "  drove  "  through  the  woods,  part  of  the  time  tied 
together,  and  three  days  from  "  Weningo "  they  came  to 
Presqu'  Isle.  Trotter's  deposition  says  he  "  saw  the  French 
had  cut  a  road  —  and  were  hawling  great  guns  to  a  place 
where  they  were  going  to  erect  another  fort."  At  Presqu' 
Isle  the  two  traders  were  put  in  irons  and  confined  under  guard 
in  an  out-house  for  four  days.  They  were  then  put  on  a  bateau 
and  brought  down  Lake  Erie  to  the  "  small  wooden  fort,"  at 
the  head  of  the  Niagara  portage.  "  From  thence  they  were 
put  into  a  cart,  and  set  out  about  noon,  and  came  to  a  large 
stone  fort  at  night."  From  old  Niagara,  as  above  stated,  the 
unlucky  traders  were  sent  forward  on  the  long  water  route 


THE  NIAGARA-OHIO  ROUTE  383 

which  hundreds  of  other  prisoners,  French,  English  and  Ameri- 
can, were  to  pass  over  in  captivity  in  the  troublous  years  to 
come.  Trotter  was  kept  in  irons  during  the  whole  voyage; 
was  held  in  "  Jayl  "  at  Montreal  four  days,  and  at  Quebec 
30  days ;  then  with  other  English  prisoners  was  put  on  board  a 
French  man-of-war.  Arriving  at  Rochelle,  he  was  again  locked 
up  in  prison  for  a  month,  on  bread  and  water ;  then  was  set 
free,  a  pauper  in  a  strange  land.  Trotter  and  McLaughlen 
and  one  Jacob  Evans,  a  fellow  exile,  begged  their  way  from 
town  to  to\vn,  finally  reaching  Bordeaux,  where  Trotter  fell 
in  with  Captain  Snead  of  the  ship  Betty  and  Sally,  who  took 
pity  on  him  and  gave  him  passage  to  Philadelphia.  Such  were 
the  fortunes  and  misfortunes  of  the  Indian  trade  in  the  Ohio 
country  in  the  year  of  peace,  1752. 

In  the  winter  of  1752,  the  French  on  the  Niagara  were 
threatened.  "  The  savage  allies  of  the  English  prowled  in  mul- 
titudes around  Fort  Niagara,  and  filled  them  there  with  fear," 
says  Chabert,  who  was  ordered  to  raise  a  war-party  in  behalf  of 
the  French.  "  I  set  out  over  the  ice  in  the  month  of  January," 
he  says,  *'  to  gather  my  recruits."  Troops  appear  to  have 
been  sent  up  from  Montreal  at  this  time.  Later  in  this  year 
we  find  Chabert,  with  an  attendant  band  of  chiefs,  paying  his 
respects  in  Montreal  to  M.  de  Longueuil,  who  administered  the 
colony  ad  interim,  from  the  death  of  La  Jonquiere  until  the 
appointment  of  Duquesnc.  For  the  next  year  or  so  he  was 
employed  in  various  expeditions,  from  Quebec  to  the  Ohio,  but 
with  his  home  at  the  Little  Niagara  fort.  In  the  winter  of 
1753  he  was  sent  into  Central  New  York  to  notify  the  Five 
Nations,  "  in  the  Governor's  name,  that  he  was  going  to  the 
Ohio,  to  take  possession  of  it,  and  to  build  forts  on  its  banks, 
adding  to  this  announcement  the  most  terrible  menaces  for  any 
one  who  would  have  the  audacity  to  oppose  him  in  this  mat- 
ter. .  .  .  The  savage  car  will  not  listen  to  this  sort  of  talk; 
it  was  received  with  bitter  and  insulting  laughter.  They  de- 
clared to  me  that  nobody  but  a  child  of  the  nation  could  have 
spoken  it  with  impunity. " 

In  the  winter  of  1753  the  command  and  control  of  the  Ni- 
agara portage  were  given  to  Chabert  in  addition  to  his  other 


384  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

and  seemingly  conflicting  duties  of  commandant  at  the  upper 
fort,  on  the  Niagara,  and  frequent  emissary  to  distant  points. 
Years  after,  summing  up  his  services  for  the  King,  he  wrote  as 
follows,  of  Niagara  and  the  portage: 

Canadian  history  makes  mention  of  this  famous  fall  which  the  eye 
of  the  traveler  never  sees  except  with  awe  and  admiration.  Lake 
Erie,  constantly  augmented  by  the  waters  of  the  upper  lakes,  Huron, 
Michigan,  etc.,  contracted  by  two  chains  of  mountains,  pours  its 
flood  into  this  strait  with  the  impetuosity  of  a  torrent  and  in  the 
river  Niagara  hurls  itself  down  130  feet  with  a  terrible  noise,  which 
can  be  heard  more  than  twelve  leagues  round  about.  Such  is  the 
invincible  obstacle  encountered  by  navigators  going  to  Presqu'  Isle, 
to  the  Ohio,  to  the  Straits  [Detroit]  and  other  French  forts  built 
above  the  Niagara. 

The  trader  and  the  officer  are  there  obliged  to  put  down,  below 
the  falls,  the  goods,  merchandise,  supplies  for  war  and  for  food 
destined  for  the  different  forts.  Men  must  carry  the  canoes  and 
the  goods  by  the  narrow  and  stumbling  paths  over  three  steep  hills. 
As  for  the  very  heavy  bales  they  can  be  transported  only  by  the  aid 
of  cables,  and  by  force  of  arm. 

Before  I  was  appointed  Commandant  of  the  Little  Fort,  there  was 
no  one  for  this  Portage,  since  the  natives  would  not  undertake  it 
except  at  very  great  expense;  thus  it  came  about  that  the  service 
suffered  further  on,  and  that  the  Governors  were  unable  to  carry  out 
expeditiously  movements  ordered,  which  were  urgent  and  necessary. 
They  encountered  there  a  further  inconvenience,  still  more  vexatious. 
The  Indians  entrusted  with  the  transport  of  goods,  and  naturally 
inclined  to  pilfer,  would  quit  the  open  path,  open  the  bales,  steal 
whatever  pleased  them,  without  fear  of  punishment  or  restitution, 
since  they  acknowledged  no  master;  still  one  was  obliged  to  treat 
them  with  consideration,  often  indeed  because  their  thievery  has  not 
been  discovered  until  too  late  to  lay  a  claim  against  them. 

The  colony  fairly  echoed 30  with  the  clamor  and  complaints  of 
the  merchants  and  officers.  The  Governors-General,  badly  informed, 
gave  orders  which  were  of  no  effect.  They  established  regulations, 
but  without  success.  Their  shrewdness  employed  all  the  resources 
of  the  politician,  their  wisdom  spent  itself  in  systems;  and  the 
abuses  always  continued.  Every  measure  was  useless,  because  the 
untractablc  savage  knew  only  his  own  caprice,  and  the  most  equita- 

zo  "  Retentissoit  suns  cense  dcs  cris,"  etc. 


THE  NIAGARA-OHIO  ROUTE  385 

blc  law  could  make  no  impression  on  barbarian  minds,  without  sin- 
cerity or  discipline.  Finally,  after  a  hundred  years  of  effort  and 
consideration,  and  the  trial  of  all  possible  resources,  no  more  effective 
means  was  found  for  remedying  so  many  inconveniences,  than  to  put 
me  in  charge  of  the  establishment  of  the  Little  Fort  of  Niagara,  and 
of  the  business  of  the  portage. 

Chabcrt  was  reluctant,  he  says,  to  assume  responsibility  for 
the  Portage,  but  could  not  have  failed  to  see  the  opportunity 
for  making  a  fortune,  which  it  afforded.  However,  he  assures 
us,  "  I  silenced  the  voice  of  interest  in  order  to  hear  only  that 
of  honor,  of  duty  and  of  public  service."  Chabert's  service  as 
Master  of  the  Portage  and  the  Fort  Little  Niagara  continued 
for  five  and  a  half  years,  until  the  end  of  French  control  in  the 
region.  The  advent  of  the  British  was  not  the  only  disaster 
that  overtook  him  ;  for  as  soon  as  France  could  lay  hands  on 
him,  and  others  who  were  charged  with  having  plundered  the 
King,  he  was  called  to  account  for  his  stewardship.  In  his  de- 
fense he  set  forth,  with  a  skill  that  reflects  credit  either  on  him 
or  his  legal  adviser,  the  circumstances  which  induced  him  to 
take  charge  of  the  Portage. 

He  entered  into  the  agreement  with  the  King,  he  tells  us, 
because  his  Majesty  "  formally  pledged  himself  to  return  at 
the  expiration  of  the  lease,  the  horses,  cattle,  harness,  yokes, 
conveyances  and  implements  necessary  for  the  said  Portage." 
The  Governor  (Jonquiere),  Chabert  says,  forced  him  into  the 
undertaking,  and  when  the  lease  • — •  apparently  for  the  season 
175r'3— 54  —  expired,  he  wished  to  give  it  up,  because  he  was 
losing  on  the  contract,  and  because  Government  had  not  fur- 
nished the  promised  help;  but  M.  Duquesne  (Jonquiere's  suc- 
cessor) induced  him  to  renew  the  contract,  promising,  in  the 
King's  name,  '"  that  the  iron,  the  steel,  the  repairing  of  the 
iron-work  for  the  carts,  and  the  cost  of  shoeing  the  horses, 
would  be  at  the  King's  expense."  Again  the  promises  were 
not  kept,  and  again  Chabert  sought  "  to  quit  absolutely,  but 
M.  de  Vaudreuil  would  not  consent  to  it,  and  ordered  me  al- 
ways to  keep  the  command  of  the  Little  Fort,  and  to  take  charge 
of  the  King's  food-supplies  and  stores.  Behold,"  he  exclaims, 
"the  source  of  all  mv  misfortunes!" 


CHAPTER  XIX 

THE  FUR  TRADE  IN  THE  '40'S 

PERPLEXITIES  OF  A  CONTRACTOR  —  EFFECT  OF  THE  WAR  OF  1744  — 
FOUNDING  OF  TORONTO  —  THE  CONVOY  SYSTEM  —  CELORON'S 
EXPEDITION  OF  1748. 

IN  the  last  chapter  we  traced  the  development  of  the  Niagara- 
Ohio  route,  and  the  varied  services  of  the  brothers  Joncaire. 
We  must  now  return  to  a  somewhat  earlier  period,  for  a  review 
of  other  phases  of  the  history  of  the  region. 

In  no  period  of  its  Eighteenth  century  history  has  so  little 
been  recorded  of  the  Niagara  region  as  in  the  years  immediately 
following  the  death  of  the  elder  Joncaire.  This  is  in  part  due 
to  the  fact  that  the  regional  events  of  that  period  relate  less 
to  expeditions  and  military  plans  than  to  the  development  and 
prosecution  of  trade.  Far  from  being  barren  or  even  meager, 
the  unpublished  documents  of  the  time  afford  much  from  which 
to  sketch  conditions  on  the  Niagara  and  neighboring  lakes. 

At  this  period  —  the  decade  of  the  '40's  —  Fort  Niagara,  as 
a  garrison,  was  pitiably  weak.  In  17-14,  when  Celoron  was 
sent  to  command  there,  the  post  had  but  34  men.  In  that  year 
34  men  were  added,  and  there  were  six  officers.  The  cannon  in 
all  Canada  were  so  few  that  Beauharnois,  writing  to  the  Count 
de  Maurepas,  October  8th,  regretted  that  he  could  not  send 
any  more  to  Niagara,  where  there  then  were  five  peteraros  and 
four  2-pounders.  In  this  summer  de  Lery  and  La  Morandiere 
came  up  to  make  such  improvements  for  defense  as  the  feeble 
exchequer  permitted.  They  repaired  and  doubled  the  old  stock- 
ade, and  apparently  did  some  work  on  the  stone  house.  Two 
years  later  (October,  1746)  when  Captain  Duplessis  was  hold- 
ing the  place  with  41  men  —  officers  and  soldiers  all  told  — 
Beauharnois  promised  that  Niagara  should  be  reinforced  "  on 
the  first  movement  of  the  enemy." 

These  notes  sufficiently  indicate  the  strength  —  weakness, 

386 


THE  FUR  TRADE  IN  THE  '-tO'S  387 

rather  —  of  the  old  fort  at  the  period  we  are  now  to  consider. 
Until  near  the  close  of  the  decade  of  the  '40's,  when  the  con- 
trol of  the  Ohio  region  dominated  all  else  in  the  Government 
policy,  Niagara  was  valued  chiefly  as  a  base  of  operations  in 
the  fur  trade,  and  a  depot  of  supplies  for  the  Indians.  It  has 
been  related  [Chap.  XIV]  how,  in  order  to  make  that  trade 
more  proh'table,  the  post  had  been  put  under  the  lease  system. 
It  is  interesting  to  note  how  that  system  worked  at  this  later 
period. 

In  174-2  an  agreement  was  reached  with  the  French  Company 
of  the  Indies,  by  which  they  undertook  to  carry  on  the  trade 
at  Forts  Frontcnac  and  Niagara,  beginning  January  1,  1743, 
for  a  period  of  six  years.  Under  the  company,  the  active 
"  farmer  of  the  posts,"  or  lessee  of  trade  privileges,  was  one 
whose  name  appears  in  the  records  as  Charles,  Chasles,  Chalcs, 
Chabet,  and  —  most  often  and  probably  correctly  —  as  the 
Sieur  Chalet.  One  document  styles  him  "  Inspector  for  the 
India  Company."  The  Intendant,  Hocquart,  wrote  that  he 
had  known  Chalet  a  long  time,  and  would  vouch  for  his  "  ac- 
tivity and  intelligence."  In  the  same  letter  l  the  Intendant 
urged  greater  economy  at  the  Lake  Ontario  posts  ;  he  thought 
that  20  soldiers  at  Niagara,  and  15  at  Frontcnac,  with  two 
officers  in  each  post,  would  be  garrison  enough  to  stand  off  any 
Indian  attack  likely  to  be  made. 

There  was  much  correspondence  before  the  articles  of  the 
lease  were  agreed  upon  and  approved  by  the  King.  Chalet 
was  to  transport  goods,  and  material  for  warehouses,  at  his 
own  expense:  but  he  was  given  the  use  of  the  two  sailing  vessels 
on  the  lake,  to  carry  his  merchandise  to  Niagara.  In  the 
autumn  of  1743  one  of  them  was  stranded,  near  Niagara, 

o 

with  considerable  loss  to  Chalet.  Apparently  as  partial  offset 
to  this,  the  next  year  he  was  allowed  300  livrcs  for  canoes, 
though  in  general,  during  the  period  of  his  lease,  he  was  re- 
quired to  furnish  his  own  canoes.  lie  was  also  relieved  of  the 
cost  of  transporting  his  supplies  from  Montreal  to  Lachinc. 

The  payment  required  of  Chalet  to  the  Government,  under 
his  lease,  was,  at  the  outset,  4,000  livres  per  year  for  each  post. 

i  Hocquart  to  the  Minister,  Quebec,  Oct.  15,  ITtJ. 


388  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

In  1745,  because  of  losses  arising  from  the  war,  it  was  reduced 
to  2,000  livres. 

Under  the  monopoly  of  the  French  India  Company,  only  its 
agents  could  buy  or  sell  beaver  skins  in  Canada ;  but  trade  in 
other  furs  was  open  to  all.  Whoever  wished  to  engage  in  the 
Indian  trade  procured  a  license  from  the  Governor  General, 
paying  therefor  a  sum  proportionate  to  the  advantages  offered 
by  the  locality  in  which  he  proposed  to  operate.  The  trader 
who  stocked  a  bateau  and  sent  it  up  the  Lakes  with  four  or 
five  men,  paid  for  his  license  some  500  or  600  livres ;  some 
posts  were  so  profitable  that  a  license  to  trade  at  them  cost 
1,000  livres.  All  trade  permits  for  certain  posts  were  occa- 
sionally withheld,  which  gave  rise  to  the  charge  that  they  were 
reserved  for  favored  relatives  or  friends.  The  money  paid 
for  trade  licenses  was  received  by  the  Governor  General,  who 
was  understood  to  use  half  of  it  for  the  poor,  and  who  did  use 
a  part  of  it  for  the  relief  of  widows  of  officers. 

But  the  forest  traffic  fluctuated  as  much  as  modern  stocks. 
There  were  times  when  traders'  licenses  were  sold  very  cheaply, 
and  other  times  when  the  Government  could  not  induce  men  to 
undertake  the  business. 

In  the  summer  of  1743  Chalet  made  the  round  of  Lake  On- 
tario, visiting  Forts  Frontenac  and  Niagara,  to  learn  the  re- 
quirements and  conditions  of  the  trade.  Except  for  an  occa- 
sional visit  of  inspection,  he  appears  to  have  conducted  the 
business,  during  the  period  of  his  lease,  at  Quebec,  relying  on 
agents  resident  at  the  posts  to  look  after  the  actual  buying 
and  selling.  There  was  no  establishment  at  Toronto,  but 
Chalet  sent  thither,  this  summer,  several  voyageurs  who  camped 
at  the  mouth  of  the  Humber  and  carried  on  a  considerable 
trade  with  passing  Indians,  most  of  whom,  had  they  not  found 
the  French  here,  would  have  gone  with  their  furs  to  Oswego. 
One  of  the  principal  lieutenants  was  one  Chicot,  spoken  of  as  a 
carpenter  and  smith,  "  of  very  moderate  ability  for  trade,  but 
absolutely  necessary  for  the  maintenance  of  buildings  at 
Frontenac  and  Niagara."  Chalet  paid  part  of  his  wages. 

On  his  return  to  Quebec,  from  Niagara,  Chalet  made  vigorous 


THE   1-TIl  TRADE   IN   THE  '40'S  38!) 

protest  against  what  ho  styled  as  abuses,  but  \vhicli  were  by  no 
means  peculiar  to  Niagara. 

At  all  of  the  posts,  for  years,  the  officers  had  been  accus- 
tomed to  engage  in  the  fur  trade  on  their  own  account.  Not 
only  the  officers,  but  soldiers,  clerks,  workmen,  could  exchange 
a  blanket  or  a  gun  with  a  friendly  Indian  who  had  a  desirable 
peltry  to  give  in  exchange.  It  was  an  irregularity,  long  tol- 
erated because  not  easily  checked,  but  the  lax  system  had 
given  rise  to  many  abuses.  Certain  posts  were  in  favor  among 
the  officers  because  of  the  opportunities  for  profit  which  they 
afforded.  When  the  posts  were  leased  or  —  to  keep  close  to 
the  French  phrase,  "  farmed  "  out,  to  a  "  fcrmicr  "  such  as 
Chalet  —  the  officers,  finding  their  opportunities  thus  cur- 
tailed, did  what  they  could  to  hamper  and  embarrass  the 
usurper  of  their  privileges  ;  with  resultant  bickerings  and  com- 
plaints which  perplexed  and  angered  all  who  had  a  hand  in  the 
administration. 

Nowhere  did  the  situation  become  more  difficult  than  at  Ni- 
agara, as  soon  as  Chalet  undertook  to  assert  his  rights.  Here 
the  commandant,  Celoron,  following  the  custom  of  his  predeces- 
sors, had  engaged  in  the  Indian  trade  on  his  own  account. 
When  he  could  no  longer  do  so,  he  made  things  as  difficult  as 
possible  for  Chalet ;  and  each,  in  letters  to  their  superiors,  com- 
plained of  the  other. 

Chalet's  first  year  or  so  as  farmer  of  the  Lake  Ontario  posts, 
although  fairly  profitable,  resulted  in  vigorous  demands  for 
better  terms  of  the  lease'.  In  1744  there  were  gathered  furs 
valued  at  more  than  94,000  livres.  The  barque  which  was 
stranded  in  the  autumn  of  17-1-3  was  not  floated  until  the  follow- 
ing spring;  but  she  was  condemned  and  Chalet  replaced  her  by 
another  of  the  same  burden.  This  once  more  gave  Lake  On- 
tario two  sailing  vessels.  In  September,  1745,  four  carpenters 
were  sent  to  Frontenac  to  build  another,  which  was  ready  in  the 
spring,  when  it  replaced  one  of  the  old  boats.  Hence,  al- 
though the  French  at  this  period  operated  four  vessels  on  the 
lake,  not  more  than  two  were  in  commission  at  the  same  time, 
and  often,  onlv  one.  In  1747  an  inventory  refers  to  the  two 


390  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

"  barques  "   then  in   commission   as   the  St.   Charles   and  St. 
Francois. 

Many  Western  Indians  who  took  their  wares  to  Oswego,  in 
the  summer  of  1745,  not  being  satisfied  with  what  was  offered 
in  trade,  returned  with  their  furs  to  Detroit,  where,  obviously 
as  a  last  resort,  they  were  disposed  of.  An  official  dispatch 
which  relates  the  occurrence,  observes  that  this  "  of  a  truth 
was  to  the  prejudice  of  the  Sieur  de  Chalet,  but  the  commerce 
of  the  Colony  lost  nothing."  That  the  company's  stores  at 
Niagara  should  be  thus  ignored  by  savages  who  had  brought  a 
wealth  of  furs  so  far,  and  for  nothing,  gave  new  cause  of  com- 
plaint to  Chalet;  while  the  scornful  Celoron  improved  the  oc- 
casion to  remind  the  Governor  that  the  trade  at  Niagara  was 
ruined  through  the  incompetence  of  Chalet ;  and  that  troubled 
contractor  complained  to  the  Intendant  that  if  the  Niagara 
establishment  was  for  a  time  not  supplied  with  goods  it  was 
because  of  the  stranding  of  the  vessel  which  was  carrying  them 
thither ;  and  besides,  he  could  not  be  expected  to  foresee  that 
Indians  going  to  the  English  at  Oswego  would  bring  their 
untraded  furs  back  to  Niagara.  In  any  case,  continues  the  re- 
port,2 if  Celoron  had  been  less  prejudiced  against  the  farm 
system,  "  it  would  not  have  been  difficult  to  make  with  Chalet 
proper  arrangements,  to  prevent  the  complaints  of  the  sav- 
ages ;  but  I  cannot  overlook  that  this  officer,  as  well  as  most  of 
those  at  the  other  posts,  are  little  pleased  at  the  arrangements 
which  have  been  made  for  carrying  on  trade,  seeking  only  to 
hamper  the  lessees  instead  of  assisting  them  as  you  ordered 
them  to  do."  Celoron  not  only  thwarted  the  lessee,  but  re- 
fused to  come  to  an  understanding  with  Hocquart  or  with 
Michel,  the  commissioner  of  the  Marine,  and  Beauharnois 
threatened  to  recall  every  officer  who  opposed  the  lessees.  In 
April,  1745,  the  President  of  the  Navy  Board,  with  royal 
sanction,  wrote  as  follows  to  Celoron : 

I  am  informed,  sir,  that  since  you  have  filled  the  command  ac- 
corded you,  of  the  fort  Niagara,  the  lessee  of  the  trade  of  that  post, 
far  from  receiving  from  you  the  assistance  and  aid  which  you  should 

2  President  of  the  Navy  Board  to  Beauharnois,  May  5,  1745. 


THE  FUR  TRADE  IN  THE  '-MTS  391 

give  him  for  the  good  of  his  undertaking,  has  found  at  your  hands 
only  diffieultics  and  obstructions. 

I  am  likewise  informed,  although  neither  M.  Hocquart  nor  M. 
Michel  have  written  of  it,  that  since  you  have  been  in  this  post,  you 
have  not  deemed  it  incumbent  to  take  council  with  either  in  regard 
to  the  improvement  of  the  trade,  nor  details  concerning  the  fort  and 
garrison.  ...  I  warn  you,  that  if  you  give  further  occasion  for  com- 
plaint, I  shall  not  be  able  to  prevent  His  Majesty  from  making  you 
feel  the  effects  of  his  displeasure. 

Celoron  was  soon  after  recalled  from  the  command  at  Ni- 
agara, being  succeeded  by  Captain  Duplessis.  He  had  per- 
sisted in  his  traffic  with  the  Indians,  much  to  the  disgust  of 
Chalet,  whose  complaints  could  not  be  ignored ;  but  the  Gov- 
ernor General,  in  writing  of  the  affair,  did  not  disguise  his 
admiration  of  certain  qualities  which  distingushed  the  sol- 
der: "I  can  only  attribute  such  stubbornness  to  the  inflexi- 
ble character  of  this  officer  who  has  moreover  all  the  essential 
qualities  of  a  man  of  war.  lie  has,  however,  felt  the  blow 
which  has  been  given  him;  I  know  that  he  has  seriously  re- 
flected," and  he  begged  Monscigncur  to  "  forget  this  affair," 
promising  to  report  later  how  Celoron  comported  himself.'5 
When  a  removal  for  disobedience  of  orders  was  coupled  with 
such  praise,  it  was  hardly  to  be  viewed  as  a  disgrace ;  the  con- 
ditions in  the  service  were  well  known,  and  the  following  year 
we  find  him  reinstated  as  commandant  at  Niagara. 

Disgusted,  and  pleading  ruin,  Chalet  sought  to  have  bis  lease 
canceled.  His  troubles  were  not  confined  to  quarrels  with 
Celoron.  Trade,  which  in  the  first  year  of  his  lease,  had  been 
encouraging,  soon  fell  off.  The  Indians  who  came  down  the 
river  with  canoes  full  of  furs,  were  not  satisfied  with  the  goods 
which  the  French  offered,  nor  with  the  rate  of  exchange.  After 
prolonged  but  unfruitful  dickering,  they  would  resume  their 
paddles  and  make  their  way  to  Oswego,  where  the  English  were 
better  stocked  and  more  liberal  in  exchange.  Not  merely  at 
Frontenac  and  Niagara,  but  at  all  the  western  posts,  the  In- 
dian trade  lapsed  into  a  precarious  and  unprofitable  state. 

In   1741,   war   was   declared   between   France   and   England, 

s  Beauharnois  to  the  Minister,  Oct.  IS,  1716. 


392  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

and  there  was  a  great  falling  off  in  the  amount  of  goods  taken 
up  for  trade  at  the  posts,  in  comparison  with  recent  previous 
years.  The  merchants  wrho  furnished  outfits  had  but  a  small 
quantity  of  goods  on  their  hands,  and  the  Indian  traders  grew 
discouraged.  Beauharnois  complained  that  although  he  of- 
fered licenses  for  nothing,  especially  for  Detroit,  in  order  that 
there  should  be  abundance  of  goods  at  that  post,  only  ten 
traders  went  up  this  year.  "  I  was  obliged,"  he  wrote,  "  to 
give  seven  of  these  licenses  gratis,  in  return  for  conveying  the 
effects  of  the  commandant  and  of  the  garrison  which  could  not 
otherwise  be  carried  up  without  great  expense  to  his  Majesty." 
It  required,  he  continues,  "  considerable  solicitation "  to  in- 
duce nine  canoes  to  go  to  Mackinac,  so  slight  was  the  prospect 
of  profit.  "  The  same  reasons  apply  equally  to  all  the  other 
leased  posts ;  also  to  those  of  Niagara  and  Fort  Frontenac, 
which  are  hardly  better  provided  with  goods  necessary  for  the 
Indian  trade  there,  and  will  be  much  less  so  next  year,  no 
supplies  of  any  description  having  reached  us  this  year." 

The  despondent  Governor  was  writing  at  Quebec,  October 
28th.  The  season  of  gales  was  at  hand,  no  ships  were  likely  to 
arrive  for  more  than  half  a  year ;  and  even  were  supplies  abun- 
dant at  Quebec,  relief  of  the  Lake  and  Western  posts  during  the 
winter  was  out  of  the  question.  The  Governor  realized  that 
with  no  goods  for  trade  at  the  posts,  the  general  trade  of  the 
Colony  would  fall  off,  and  the  Indians,  no  longer  finding  their 
necessaries  at  the  French  posts,  would  turn  to  the  English, 
where  their  wants  would  be  satisfied,  but  on  conditions  en- 
tirely opposed  to  the  interests  of  the  French. 

After  the  recall  of  Celoron,  Beauharnois  wrote  to  the  Minis- 
ter in  sanguine  mood :  "  There  has  been  no  more  quarreling 
since  the  new  order  was  established  in  the  trade  at  Niagara  and 
Frontenac.  Nothing  has  happened  contrary  to  the  good  of  the 
trade,  at  least  nothing  has  come  to  my  knowledge."  An  ef- 
fort had  been  made,  before  the  war  of  1744,  to  reduce  the 
garrisons  to  the  lowest  possible  point,  in  the  interest  of 
economy ;  but  since  that  date,  increases  were  deemed  neces- 
sary. 

It  was  not  a  happy  time  at  these  feeble  forts.     Duplessis 


THE  FUR  TRADE  IN  THE  '40'S  393 

in  command  at  Niagara,  fell  sick  "  of  fatigue,  conjoined  to 
bad  diet,"  J  and  asked  leave  to  go  down  to  Quebec  to  recruit 
his  health.  The  real  trouble  was  that  the  Senccas  refused  to 
supply  the  post  with  fresh  meat.  Joncaire,  living  amongst 
them,  was  also  dangerously  ill  at  this  time.  The  Niagara  gar- 
rison was  but  a  feeble  handful.  Besides  Duplessis  there  were 
Lieutenant  de  Contreca'ur ;  two  ensigns,  de  Boulascry  and 
Chevalier  de  Garner ;  one  2d  ensign,  a  son  of  Duplessis ;  four 
sergeants  and  33  soldiers,  two  of  them  gunners. 

And  the  trouble  really  grew  out  of  the  trade  situation.  Dis- 
satisfied with  what  they  received  at  the  fort,  and  the  withhold- 
ing of  brandy,  the  Senecas  refused  their  customary  help  as 
hunters.  It  was  the  first  boycott  on  the  Niagara,  and  it 
nearly  ruined  the  post. 

Duplessis  was  allowed  to  leave,  with  appreciative  mention  in 
the  dispatches:  "  He  is  a  good  officer,  who  has  well  acquitted 
himself  among  these  people  [the  Senccas]  in  very  critical 
times."  The  command  passed  to  de  Contreca'ur. 

A  memoir  written  by  Chalet5  sheds  some  light  on  the  condi- 
tions of  the  trade  at  the  lake  posts. 

On  the  basis  of  the  business  of  1743  and  '44,  Chalet  declared 
that  he  was  being  ruined,  and  must  relinquish  the  lease.  The 
agreed  amount  payable  to  the  King  for  the  trade  privilege  at 
Frontenac  and  Niagara,  was  8,000  livres,  yearly.  The  cost 
of  transporting  goods  to  these  posts  was  10,000  livres;  for 
use  of  bateaux,  1,500  livres  were  paid;  wages  of  sailors  and 
bateau-men  exclusive  of  their  food,  1,800  livres;  wages  of  em- 
ployes and  workmen  at  the  posts,  4,000;  and  gratuities  to  the 
officers,  2,400  livres.  This  last  item  is  frequently  mentioned. 
It  was  customary,  so  long  as  the  French  were  in  control  of  the 
lake  posts,  to  allow  to  the  principal  officers  a  substantial 
"  gratification,"  perhaps  as  solace  for  the  lost  privilege  of 
barter  on  their  own  account. 

The  above  items  made  a  total  expense  account  of  27,700 
livres  ;  to  which  were  to  be  added  the  cost  of  rigging,  etc.,  for 
the  barques,  tools,  and  supplies  for  boatmen  and  for  employes 

*  Boisherbert    on    Indian    Affairs,   Nov.,   1717. 
5  Dated  Dueller,  Oct.  •:<>,   1711. 


394  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

at  the  posts.  The  other  side  of  the  ledger  showed  as  follows: 
50,000  livres  worth  of  merchandise  sold  at  Frontenac  and 
Niagara  at  15  per  cent,  profit,  netted  the  lessee  7,500  livres. 
Profit  on  food  supplies  was  figured  at  2,500  livres  and  on 
brandy,  sold  at  100  per  cent,  above  cost,  at  8,000;  a  total  of 
19,000  livres,  against  expenses  of  27,700  livres.  It  is  hardly 
necessary  to  observe  that  the  profit  on  Indian  goods  which  were 
paid  for  in  furs,  undoubtedly,  at  least  ultimately,  far  exceeded 
the  15  per  cent,  allowed  by  Chalet;  but  by  his  own  figures  the 
terms  of  the  lease  were  ruinous.  His  pleas  resulted  in  a  re- 
duction of  the  annual  rent ;  but  the  depressed  and  disturbed 
state  of  trade  which  followed  the  declaration  of  war  led  to  the 
abandonment  of  the  contract  before  the  six-year  term  had  ex- 
pired. 

The  war  raised  the  price  of  goods  in  France.  After  the 
risk  and  difficulty  of  transport  to  Quebec,  the  price  was  still 
further  raised ;  so  that,  when  finally  laid  down  in  the  storehouse 
at  Niagara,  the  guns  and  knives,  blankets  and  trinkets  repre- 
sented a  far  greater  value  than  under  more  favorable  condi- 
tions. But  these  far-reaching  causes  meant  nothing  to  sav- 
ages who  had  paddled  a  thousand  miles  with  their  canoes  gun- 
wale-deep with  beaver,  mink,  marten  and  fox.  They  only 
knew  what  had  been  given  for  these  furs  on  other  visits  at 
Niagara.  When  Chalet's  clerks  valued  his  wares  on  a  basis 
60  per  cent,  higher  than  their  cost  in  France  —  as  was  the 
case  in  1744  —  the  Indians  refused  to  trade,  and  went  on  to 
Oswego. 

It  was  estimated  in  1744  that  all  of  the  posts  under  company 
control  produced  200,000  livres'  worth  of  beaver.  If  this  fur 
could  have  reached  the  manufacturers  in  France  in  good  sea- 
son, the  market  would  have  been  well  sustained ;  but  with  ship- 
ments from  Quebec  few  and  uncertain,  values  fell  off,  and  the 
basis  of  barter  at  the  posts  was  still  further  demoralized.  "  I 
am  convinced,"  wrote  the  Intendant  to  the  Controller-General, 
in  October,  1744,  "  that  an  increase  in  the  price  of  beaver  will 
induce  all  of  the  Indians  who  are  now  going  on  to  the  English, 
to  stop  at  Niagara."  Accounts  of  the  time  show  that  both 


THE  FUR  TRADE  IN  THE  '40'S  395 

French  and  English  allowed  from  three  to  four  francs  for  green 
beaver  pelts  and  80  for  the  dry. 

In  1746  Chalet  relinquished  his  lease  of  the  Lake  Ontario 
posts.  Efforts  were  made  to  induce  him  to  continue,  for  there 
was  a  scarcity  in  the  colony  of  men  able  and  honest  enough 
to  assume  such  duties.  lie  appears  indeed  to  have  yielded  in 
some  measure  to  the  call  for  his  continued  services ;  for  in 
1747  we  find  him  supervising  a  new  arrangement  of  the  con- 
voys, of  the  correspondence  with  the  store-keepers  at  Fron- 
tenac  and  Niagara,  and  in  general,  working  for  an  economical 
administration  at  those  posts.  He  is  also  mentioned  as  having 
been  very  useful  during  the  war  (1744-48)  because  of  his 
knowledge  of  English  and  his  ability  to  learn  from  prisoners 
the  state  of  things  with  the  enemy.  He  died  prior  to  July, 
1748,  at  which  time  his  brother-in-law,  Gobcrt  de  St.  Martin, 
petitioned  for  a  copy  of  his  will  and  an  inventory  of  his  prop- 
erty. 

It  is  worthy  of  note,  that  during  this  four  years  of  war,  the 
French  abode  at  Frontenac  and  Niagara,  the  English  at  Os- 
wego,  and  neither  attacked  the  other.  Each  party  contem- 
plated such  an  attack,  and  both  gave  it  up  through  mistrust 
of  the  Iroquois,  without  whose  help  they  dared  not  hope  for 
success.  In  April,  1745,  John  Lydius  reported  that  the 
French  with  600  Indians  under  Uelestre,  were  coining  to  at- 
tack Oswego.  The  matter  was  considered  by  the  Council  at 
New  York,  and  by  the  Mohawks  at  their  castles,  but  there  was 
no  attack.  The  French  had  given  it  up  because  the  Scnecas 
and  other  tribes  would  not  pledge  support.6  The  English  on 
their  part,  also  considered  an  expedition  against  Fort  Niagara, 
but  abandoned  it  for  the  same  reason  —  the  refusal  of  their 
Indian  allies  to  aid  them.  For  once,  Iroquois  neutrality  was 
respected  by  both  belligerents,  though  neither  would  have  re- 
spected it,  had  he  felt  strong  enough  to  ignore  the  Indians. 

In  the  summer  of  1745,  fearing  an  English  attack  on  Ni- 
agara and  the  portage,  and  that  the  convovs  to  that  post  and 

6  Memo,  of  the  Kinir  in  instructions  to  the  Marquis  Duquesne,  Versailles, 
May  1.5,  17.52.  See  abstract  in  Can.  Arch.  Kept,  1905,  L.  Hi,5. 


396  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

to  Detroit  would  be  intercepted  and  pillaged,  Beauharnois  had 
sent  to  the  Niagara  the  Sieur  de  St.  Pierre,  with  60  Nipissings 
and  Algonquins.  With  them  came  also  the  Sieur  Demuy,  the 
elder,  with  a  force  under  orders  to  proceed  to  Detroit.  At  the 
same  time  de  Longueuil  gathered  a  horde  of  friendly  savages 
and  came  to  the  aid  of  Niagara.  It  is  not  clear  that  the  Eng- 
lish even  contemplated  an  attack  on  Niagara  at  this  period. 
At  any  rate,  none  was  made;  but  Beauharnois  justified  his 
elaborate  steps  for  defense  by  the  fact  that  the  English  were 
deterred,  and  that  his  precautions  had  induced  many  traders, 
coming  down  from  the  upper  country,  to  tarry  with  profit  at 
Niagara.  The  scare  also  resulted  in  a  strengthening  of  the 
fortifications ;  but  the  rapid  caving  in  of  the  lake  banks  near 
the  fort  led  the  Governor  General  to  advise  moving  the  fort 
to  the  other  side  of  the  river,  "  where  I  am  assured  it  would 
be  on  a  rock  foundation."  7  A  year  later,  perhaps  as  a  result 
of  protective  work,  he  writes  that  "  the  lake,  which  was  under- 
mining the  place  where  the  fort  stands,  has  made  no  further 
progress  for  a  year."  :  He  wras  now  disposed  to  strengthen 
the  fortifications  and  enlarge  the  garrison ;  "  it  is  certain," 
he  assured  the  Minister,  "  that  this  place  is  one  of  the  keys  of 
the  country,  and  must  be  made  proof  against  both  savages  and 
the  English."  He  urged  the  necessity  of  taking  possession 
of  Oswego ;  but  before  his  plans  could  take  shape,  the  Peace 
of  Aix-la-Chapelle,  October  7,  1748,  brought  armed  strife  on 
the  lake  to  an  end.  "  Only  a  true  "  at  best,  that  treaty  did 
not  in  the  least  check  the  strife  for  control  of  the  Indian  trade. 

A  serious  loss  to  the  French,  at  this  time  —  the  late  season 
of  1748  —  was  the  wreck  of  the  vessel  relied  on  for  transport 
between  Frontenac  and  Niagara.  Bigot  was  instructed 9  to 
take  necessary  steps  to  replace  "  the  Niagara  barque,"  with- 
out which  the  lake  posts,  Niagara  most  of  all,  were  seriously 
handicapped  in  their  efforts  to  hold  the  Indian  trade. 

The  strength  of  the  Niagara  garrison,  as  stated  by  Indians 
or  English  soldiers,  carried  there  captive,  can  seldom  be  ac- 

7  La  Galissonierc  to  the  Minister,  Oct.  19,  1747. 

8/6.,  Oct.  5,  1718. 

o  Navy  Board  to  Big-ot,  Apr.  11,  1749. 


THE  FUR  TRADE  IN  THE  '40'S  397 

ccptcd  as  trustworthy.  Deserters  from  the  post  were  better 
informed.  One  such  wanderer,  who  reached  New  York  and 
was  examined  in  February,  1745,  reported  that  there  were  100 
men  at  Niagara,  witli  four  cannon.10  Obviously,  the  size  of 
the  garrison  varied  with  each  new  arrival  or  departure  of 
troops ;  and  there  was  much  coining  and  going  of  small  parties. 
In  1744  the  garrison  varied  from  30  to  64  soldiers,  with  six 
officers. 

Not  a  season  passed  without  some  effort  at  repairs  and  pro- 
tective work  at  Fort  Niagara.  In  the  summer  of  1744,  De 
Lery  and  Morandiere  rebuilt  the  walls.  Duplessis,  in  1745, 
strengthened  the  fortifications  and  was  commended  for  his  pre- 
cautions.11 He  also  tried  to  stay  the  constant  caving  off  of  the 
high  lake  bank  north  of  the  fort.  A  year  later  we  find  the 
Navy  Board  writing  about  it ;  "  It  is  vexatious  that  the  timber 
revetment  on  Lake  Ontario  to  prevent  the  water  from  reach- 
ing the  base  of  Fort  Niagara  12  has  not  been  kept  up,  and  the 
earth  continues  to  cave  in.  Some  way  must  be  found  to  pre- 
vent it,  as  soon  as  possible."  13  Many  letters  were  written  on 
the  subject.  Replying  to  a  proposal  by  La  Galissonierc,  to 
abandon  the  place,  and  rebuild  on  the  west  side  of  the  Niagara, 
the  President  of  the  Navy  Board  admitted  that  a  bad  choice 
had  been  made  in  the  site  of  Fort  Niagara,  and  complained  of 
the  endless  expense  incurred  in  trying  to  stop  the  wearing 
away  of  the  banks.  However,  he  added,  "  before  submitting 
to  the  King  the  proposition  you  have  made,  of  moving  it  to  the 
other  side  of  the  river,  you  must  show  the  advantages  to  fol- 
low, both  as  to  substantial  location,  and  in  regard  to  the 
Indian  trade.14  A  great  point  was,  whether  such  removal 
would  further  the  efforts  of  the  French  to  prevent  Western 
Indians  from  carrying  their  furs  to  Oswego.  The  scheme  did 
not  receive  royal  sanction,  and  was  dropped. 

Contrecoeur's  request  to  be  relieved  was  granted.  June  15, 
1748,  when  the  convoy  reached  Fort  Niagara,  it  brought  a  new 

10  X.  Y.  Council  Minutes. 

n  Letter  from  Prcs.  of  the  Navy  Board,  Mar.  7,  1716. 

T-  "'  Jtutqii'  nu  plif'  <ln  fort  de  Xinu<irri." 

13  Xavy  Board  to  La  Jonquirre  and   Ilocquart,  Mar.  If5,  1717. 

1 1  Pres.    of   the    Xavy   hoard    to   La    Galissonirre,   "Marly,   Jan.    23,   1718.'' 


398  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

commandant  in  the  person  of  Captain  de  Raymond,  who  had 
already  commanded  there  in  1743.  His  full  name  has  not 
been  noted  in  the  correspondence  of  the  time,  and  but  little 
concerning  his  military  service.  In  July,  1746,  he  had  con- 
ducted, from  Montreal  to  Quebec,  a  party  of  English  pris- 
oners, who  had  been  taken  captive  by  Indians.  He  had  been 
at  Niagara  but  a  few  weeks  when  he  wrote  a  long  letter,15  in 
which  he  dwelt  on  the  importance  of  the  post  and  the  great 
danger  of  an  attack  by  Indians  in  English  interest.  It  was 
because  it  was  so  exposed,  he  boasted,  that  the  Governor, 
Galissoniere,  had  called  him  to  its  command.  "  It  is  in  the 
way  of  all  the  savage  nations  of  the  upper  country  who  are 
continually  going  and  coming  for  trade  with  the  English  at 
Oswego,  Albany  and  Boston.  It  is  moreover,  one  of  the  most 
important  keys  of  the  country.  .  .  .  With  Niagara  in  the 
hands  of  our  enemies,  the  Lakes  Ontario  and  Erie  would  be  closed 
to  us."  He  enlarges  on  this  point,  and  concludes  by  calling 
attention  to  his  26  years  of  zealous  service  for  France  in 
America,  and  begs  for  appointment  to  one  of  the  vacant  majori- 
ties. He  was  transferred  from  Niagara  apparently  in  1749 ; 
was  made  a  captain  and  commended  for  his  gallantry  at  Ti- 
conderoga  in  1758,  but  does  not  again  come  within  the  field  of 
our  narrative. 

Out  of  the  trade  conditions  and  rivalries  of  the  time  came 
the  establishment  which  grew  into  the  present  city  of  Toronto. 
An  official  communication  of  October  9,  1749,  signed  by  both 
La  Jonquiere  and  Bigot,  advises  that  a  more  substantial  es- 
tablishment be  made  on  the  north  shore  of  Lake  Ontario  near 
the  mouth  of  the  Humber  —  a  natural  harbor  and  portage 
terminal  which  had  long  been  called  Toronto.  As  has  been 
noted,  traders  were  sent  there  some  years  before;  now  it  was 
proposed  to  send  "  an  officer,  15  soldiers  and  some  workmen 
to  build  there  a  little  palisaded  fort,"  to  intercept  the  Indians 
from  the  West,  on  their  way  to  Oswego.  We  shall  presently 
see  how  this  suggestion  was  acted  upon.  For  a  period,  both 
Frontenac  and  Toronto  were  "  King's  posts,"  Avhere  trade  was 

is  Raymond   to    Monseigneur   ,   dated    "  Fort   de    Niagara,   8    7bre 

[Sept.]  1748."     Can.  Arch.,  ser.  F.,  vol.  92,  pp.  163-4. 


THE  FUR  TRADE  IN  THE  '40'S  399 

conducted  on  Government  account.  Furs  received  there,  by 
barter  with  Indians,  were  afterwards  sold  at  public  auction, 
and  the  proceeds  were  supposed  to  be  turned  into  the  treasury. 

It  is  not  until  April  15,  1750,  that  official  record  appears 
of  a  new  lease  of  trade  privileges  at  Forts  Frontenac  and 
Niagara.  The  lessee  is  only  mentioned  as  "  the  Sieur  Roger," 
and  one  of  his  first  troubles  was  the  "  trade  limits  "  which 
were  drawn  between  Niagara  and  the  new  post  of  Toronto ; 
traders  from  the  latter  place  were  warned  not  to  encroach  on 
territory  tributary  to  Niagara. 

La  Jonquiere  would  have  established  trading  posts  on  Lake 
Erie,  and  still  others  on  Lake  Ontario,  but  had  to  be  satis- 
fied with  the  new  Toronto.  "  The  forts  of  Niagara  and  De- 
troit," wrote  the  President  of  the  Navy  Board,  "  will  always 
suffice  to  assure  the  communication  of  these  lakes.  More  posts 
would  mean  merely  more  expense  and  a  scattering  of  the  forces 
of  the  Colony.  The  King  has  not  approved  your  views  in 
this  regard,  and  his  will  is  that  these  posts  be  not  made."  lie 
did  however  look  with  favor  on  a  new  post  for  the  Ohio  coun- 
try, to  ensure  communication  with  Louisiana ;  and  later,  as 
related,  a  post  on  the  Niagara  at  the  upper  end  of  the  port- 
age, was  established,  subsidiary  to  Fort  Niagara.  It  became, 
in  the  few  years  of  its  existence,  of  very  great  importance. 
Its  controlling  spirit,  Chabcrt,  received  elaborate  instructions 
regarding  that  part  of  his  duties  relating  to  trade.  In  1756, 
de  Vaudreuil  authorized  him  to  establish  a  storehouse  for 
the  Indian  goods,  and  sent  out  a  blacksmith  who  should  be 
stationed  where  most  needed  among  the  tribes.  "  We  antici- 
pate," wrote  de  Vaudreuil,  "  that  the  Five  Nations  will  make 
their  trade  at  Niagara,"  and  he  admonished  Chabert  to  give 
them  all  possible  attention:  "  We  have  sent  to  Niagara  pro- 
visions and  goods  needed  for  the  trade.  The  Sieur  de  Cha- 
bert knows  how  important  it  is  to  us  that  the  Five  Nations  have 
no  occasion  to  regret  the  English.  The  clerks  put  in  charge 
of  the  King's  trade  shall  give  the  goods  to  them  on  as  favor- 
able terms  as  possible." 

ir>  Instructions  of  the  Marquise  de  Vaudreuil,  given  to  the  Sieur  de  Jon- 
caire-Chabert,  Oct.   1!>,    IT.Ifi. 


400  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

There  had  been,  in  fact,  two  objects  in  establishing  the  lease 
or  farm  system  wherever  practicable.  One  was  to  increase  the 
revenue  of  the  King,  and,  by  means  of  the  fur  trade,  offset 
as  far  as  possible,  the  cost  of  the  posts,  which  was  ever  be- 
coming more  and  more  burdensome.  A  second  object  was,  to 
keep  the  officers  and  employees  at  the  posts  from  being  inter- 
ested in  trade  profits,  and  put  an  end  to  the  constant  complain- 
ing of  both  traders  and  Indians. 

As  late  as  1752,  the  admission  was  made  in  official  corre- 
spondence, that  the  system  had  not  proved  satisfactory.  In 
some  cases,  the  lessees  of  a  post,  instead  of  fighting  the  issue 
to  a  finish,  as  Chalet  did  with  Celoron  at  Niagara,  with  less 
integrity  connived  with  the  officer  in  command,  sharing  both 
privileges  and  profits.  There  were  so  many  "  deals  "  of  one 
sort  and  another,  that  in  June,  1752,  the  President  of  the 
Navy  Board  asked  the  Governor,  Duquesne,  to  consider  if  it 
might  not  be  better  to  abolish  the  farm  system,  and  make 
the  trade  free  at  the  posts,  merely  imposing  certain  conditions 
on  the  traders,  either  in  the  form  of  licenses  (conges)  to  be 
paid  for,  or  by  requiring  them  to  transport  provisions  and 
supplies  for  the  King's  storehouses.  In  1749  an  order  had 
been  issued  to  the  commandants  at  Frontenac,  Niagara  and 
Detroit  to  see  that  the  traders  or  storekeepers  of  those  posts 
put  on  their  goods  the  same  prices  that  the  English  were 
charging  at  Oswego.  It  was  hoped  in  this  way  to  check  the 
swelling  tide  of  trade  at  Oswrego ;  but  it  was  not  materially 
checked  until,  in  1756,  the  fortunes  of  war  took  Oswego  itself 
away  from  the  English.  The  Indians  of  the  Lake  region  then 
had  no  alternative,  except  by  the  long  journey  to  Albany;  and 
so  for  a  time,  even  in  these  years  of  war,  the  French  posts 
enjoyed  a  revival  of  trade.  A  report  of  October  30,  1757, 
observes,  that  the  trade  of  Frontenac,  Niagara  and  on  the 
Ohio  would  have  been  considerable,  the  past  season,  if  the 
posts  had  been  sufficiently  stocked  with  goods ;  but  they  were 
left  unprovided  at  a  time  when  the  upper  country  Indians 
had  abundance  of  peltry.  "  Most  of  them  have  left  their 
peltries  in  the  King's  storehouses,  and  content  themselves 
with  a  receipt  from  the  storekeeper,  who  pledges  himself  to 


THE  FUR  TRADE  IN  THE  '-«)'S  401 

satisfy  their  demands  next  spring."  Vaudreuil,  who  is  here 
quoted,  foresaw  that  the  lack  of  supplies  would  occasion  seri- 
ous want,  and  did  what  he  could  to  meet  the  needs  of  the 
service.  "  It  is  certain,"  he  wrote,  "  that  in  peace  the  King's 
posts  will  yield  large  profit,  for  the  quantity  of  furs  which 
come  from  everywhere  have  no  other  market  since  they  have 
lost  Oswego."  JJut  there  was  to  he  no  more  peace;  and  in  the 
closing  years  of  French  domination,  legitimate  trade  at  the  lake 
and  river  posts  was  to  be  swallowed  up  in  the  general  deluge  of 
fraud  and  waste. 

In  the  summer  of  1747,  after  the  Hurons  of  Sandusky  Lake 
had  murdered  five  Frenchmen,  and  all  the  Lake  posts  felt  un- 
easy, unusual  care  was  exercised  in  making  up  and  dispatch- 
ing the  Convoy.  All  the  trading  canoes  bound  for  Detroit 
and  other  western  posts  were  ordered  to  leave  Montreal  with 
the  Convoy  carrying  the  Government  shipment  of  post  supplies. 
As  this  large  and  picturesque  flotilla  was  paddling  its  way 
through  Lake  Ontario,  it  came  upon  a  large  canoe  full  of 
white  men,  women  and  children.  Instead  of  attempting  a  de- 
fense or  an  escape,  they  rested  on  the  quiet  lake  until  the 
canoes  of  the  French  overtook  and  surrounded  them,  then 
informed  their  amazed  and  voluble  captors  that  they  were 
refugees  from  Oswego.  One  of  the  men,  who  spoke  French, 
said  he  was  a  deserter  from  the  English  troops  quartered  there, 
and  explained  to  Commander  Dubuisson  that  his  party  were 
all  Irish,  who  had  become  dissatisfied  with  the  state  of  things 
at  the  English  post,  and  had  decided  to  seek  their  fortunes 
among  the  French.  It  developed  later  that  this  Oswego 
refugee  was  one  "  Kollin,"  as  Dubuisson  reported  it;  being 
Irish,  his  name  was  no  doubt  Collins.  He  and  his  family  were 
subsequently  sent  down  to  Quebec  where,  on  examination,  he 
stated  that  *;  he  had  fled  from  Choueguen  [Oswego]  through 
apprehension  of  being  prosecuted  for  having  infringed  some 
prohibitory  regulations."  which  is  vague  enough.  One  or  more 
soldiers  had  followed  him.  The  Governor  concludes:  "They 
have  remained  at  Quebec  and  profess  the  Catholic  religion." 
Among  other  bits  of  news  which  the  refugees  told  the  French 
was  the  information  that  the  Governor  of  Menade  —  that  is, 


402  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

New  York  —  wishing  to  corrupt  Joncaire  Chabert,  had  of- 
fered him  a  captain's  commission  in  the  British  service.  Jon- 
caire refusing  to  be  thus  corrupted,  the  Governor  had  turned 
his  attention  to  the  Senecas,  some  of  whom  had  gone  over  to 
him. 

The  uncertainty  of  Seneca  friendship  at  this  time  made 
Dubuisson  cautious.  At  Fort  Niagara  he  landed  20  men  to 
cut  wood  for  the  garrison;  then  hastened  up  to  the  Heights. 
"  The  portage  was  passed  very  promptly  and  quietly,"  wrote 
Duplessis,  the  commandant  at  Niagara,  "  except  the  last  night, 
when  some  drunken  fellows  of  the  guard  gravely  illtreated  the 
Grand  Chief  of  the  Senecas,  who  is  very  much  dissatisfied  in 
consequence."  Duplessis  sent  Chabert  to  the  village  of  the 
Little  Rapid,  "  with  something  to  restore  the  temper  of  that 
chief."  What  the  "  something  "  was,  the  records  fail  to  state, 
but  Chabert,  as  expert  as  he  was  diplomatic,  unquestionably 
knew  what  palliatives  would  soothe  this  ruffled  lord  of  the  vil- 
lage of  the  Little  Rapid  —  the  Buffalo  of  1747. 

These  troubles  adjusted,  Dubuisson  and  his  laden  canoes 
paddled  off  into  the  mists  of  Lake  Erie ;  but  when  Detroit 
was  reached,  de  Longueuil,  there  commanding,  announced  that 
he  had  authority  to  detain  at  his  post  all  the  people  of  the 
convoy,  even  the  voyageurs  and  employees,  if  any  treachery 
were  apprehended  from  Indian  sources. 

Neither  travel  nor  traffic  were  ever  free  from  great  hazard 
at  this  period ;  but  in  September,  so  large  a  deputation  of 
Senecas  and  other  Iroquois  visited  Quebec,  that  the  Admin- 
istration again  "  breathed  easy  " ;  for  so  long  as  their  head 
men  were  guests  of  the  French,  no  war  parties  were  likely  to 
molest  French  posts  or  settlements.  Profiting  by  this  situa- 
tion, the  garrisons  at  Frontenac  and  Niagara  were  reinforced 
and  newly  stocked  with  food  and  goods  for  trade. 

The  needs  of  the  Detroit  colony,  and  the  growing  number 
of  traders  in  the  West,  greatly  increased  the  traffic  through 
the  Niagara  and  over  the  portage.  For  many  years  before  the 
end  of  French  dominion  on  the  Lakes,  for  the  sake  of  economy, 
convenience  and  protection,  the  transport  of  goods  from  the 
East  to  the  West  was  somewhat  systematized.  Although  there 


THE  FUR  TRADE  IN  THE  '40'S  403 

was  much  coming  and  going,  during  the  season  of  navigation, 
the  main  shipment  was  made  in  late  summer,  and  because  the 
boats  were  dispatched  under  armed  protection,  it  came  to  be 
known  as  the  Convoy.  Many  boats  were  loaded  at  Montreal, 
by  the  Government,  with  goods  for  the  settlers,  still  more 
goods  for  the  Indian  trade,  building  material,  arms  and  am- 
munition. Even  money,  and  some  articles  of  luxury,  were 
sent  by  the  Convoy.  An  adequate  armed  force  of  the  King's 
troops,  or  of  Canadian  militia,  accompanied.  Because  of  the 
protection  thus  afforded,  the  merchants  of  Quebec,  Three 
Rivers  and  Montreal,  who  had  agents  or  representatives  any- 
where to  the  westward,  sent  out  their  supplies  and  recruits  at 
the  same  time.  Thus  the  Convoy  was  swelled  to  a  large  fleet 
of  laden  canoes  and  bateaux,  against  which  no  roving  band 
of  ill-disposed  savages  was  likely  to  do  harm.  The  departure 
from  Montreal  was  in  August.  The  toil  of  the  rapids  and 
the  portages  was  lightened  Avith  jest  and  song.  The  force 
was  so  great  that  the  night  encampments  felt  secure.  To- 
gether the  laden  craft  threaded  the  channels  of  the  Thousand 
Isles,  and  insolent  in  their  strength,  swept  past  the  impotent 
post  of  Oswego,  to  taunt  and  challenge  the  handful  of  help- 
less British.  The  arrival  of  the  Convoy  at  the  mouth  of  the 
Niagara  was  the  great  event  of  the  year  for  the  lonely  gar- 
rison at  the  fort.  Then  followed  busy  and  stirring  days,  with 
profit  for  the  Indians  of  the  portage,  who  with  incredible 
loads  toiled  up  the  steeps  and  through  the  forest  to  the  land- 
ing above  the  Falls  —  after  1750,  Fort  Little  Niagara.  If 
one  would  conceive  of  the  labor  of  the  portage,  let  him  even 
to-day  pass  over  the  improved  road,  which  docs  not  wholly 
coincide  with  the  old  portage  path,  and  try  to  imagine  the 
means  and  effort  required  to  transport,  not  the  light  bark 
canoes,  but  the  heavy  plank  bateaux,  up  the  heights  and 
through  the  forest,  eight  miles  to  the  point  of  ree'mbarka- 
tion.  Although  bateaux  were  kept  in  reserve,  at  either  end 
of  the  portage,  there  were  times  when  these  heavy  boats  had 
to  be  transported  in  numbers,  up  and  down  the  hills.  Oxen 
and  horses  were  used  in  the  later  years ;  but  many  a  loaded 
train  passed  that  way  with  no  motive  power  but  human  muscle. 


404  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

Small  wonder  if,  after  the  greater  tasks  were  over,  before  the 
boats  paddled  off  up  the  river  to  Lake  Erie,  there  were  hours 
of  idleness  and  drunkenness.  The  old  portage  road  was  al- 
Avays  a  place  of  theft  from  the  goods  in  transit,  and  of  ex- 
asperating and  demoralizing  debauch,  especially  by  the  In- 
dians who  served  as  carriers,  and  profited  by  the  needs  of  all 
who  went  that  way. 

The  story  of  the  portage,  here  touched  on  only  as  inci- 
dental to  the  general  course  of  our  narrative,  rivals  in  inci- 
dent and  importance  the  story  of  Fort  Niagara  itself.  In 
some  respects  it  is  more  significant,  for  the  portage  is  a  part 
of  the  great  story  of  the  West.  For  half  a  century,  De- 
troit, largely  dependent  on  the  East  for  means  of  subsistence, 
watched  with  apprehension  and  deep  concern,  the  successful 
passing  of  the  Niagara  portage,  not  only  by  the  annual  Con- 
voy, but  by  her  high  officials,  her  soldiers  and  her  traders, 
with  their  families  and  possessions.  One  random  record  from 
the  old  days  may  serve  to  vivify  the  conditions  of  the  times. 
It  was  at  the  Niagara  portage  that  the  baby  Nicolas  Cam- 
peau,  son  of  Etienne  and  Jeanne  Cecile  (Catin)  Campcau, 
was  dropped  in  the  river  by  a  voyageur;  but  instead  of  meet- 
ing the  fate  of  countless  unfortunates  since,  the  lusty  young- 
ster was  rescued  and  lived  to  be  known  for  many  years  as 
"  Niagara  "  Campcau.  In  the  records  of  the  Huron  Mis- 
sion near  Detroit  (1733-56)  are  many  references  to  this  "  Ni- 
agara." In  1751  he  was  farmer  for  the  mission  and  appears 
to  have  lived  on  Bois  Blanc  Island.  The  reader  of  the  old 
mission  records  will  discover  that  among  "  Niagara  "  Campcau's 
live  stock  was  a  valued  cow  named  "  La  Niagara  ";  but  whether 
she  too  had  adventures  at  the  portage  is  not  stated;  and  per- 
haps we  are  carrying  our  regional  researches  further  than  is 
edifying  or  essential. 

The  .shipment  of  goods  to  Western  trading  posts  was  well 
systematized.  To  Detroit  and  posts  east  of  it,  on  the  Lakes, 
90  canoes  were  sent  out  annually,  of  which  10  were  appor- 
tioned to  Niagara.  As  the  average  value  of  a  laden  canoe 
was  7,000  livres,  the  wealth  represented  by  a  great  flotilla  of 
them  is  apparent.  Tlic.se  capacious  canoes  were  of  three,  six, 


THE  FUR  TRADE  IN  THE  '40'S  405 

12  and  even  24  places,  and  the  larger  ones  could  carry  3000 
pounds  weight. 

In  1748,  the  Convoy  was  commanded  by  an  experienced  of- 
ficer, already  alluded  to,  Pierre  Joseph  Celeron.17  lie  was  a 
veteran  in  Canadian  service  and  had  received  knighthood  in 
the  Military  Order  of  St.  Louis.  Prior  to  1739  he  had  been 
in  command  at  Mackinac  and  had  shared  in  the  Chicasaw 
campaign.  In  1740  he  was  again  in  command  at  Mackinac 
and  passed  back  and  forth  through  the  Niagara,  as  he  prob- 
ably had  in  earlier  years.  As  already  noted,  he  was  in  com- 
mand at  Fort  Niagara  for  about  two  years  from  the  fall  of 
1744,  and  was  transferred  from  the  Niagara  to  Fort  St. 
Frederic  on  Lake  Champlain  where  he  served  in  1746-47.  At 
the  time  of  his  recall  from  that  post,  in  November,  1747, 
Boisherbert  wrote  of  him:  "lie  has  acquired  the  esteem  of 
everybody  " ;  "  deserves  promotion,  being  one  of  the  best  offi- 
cers we  have,  and  even  one  of  the  oldest  captains." 

The  Convoy  which  this  experienced  and  trusted  officer  com- 
manded, in  the  summer  of  1748,  was  a  notable  one.  The  sec- 
ond in  command  was  M.  de  La  Naudierc,  and  the  escort  con- 
sisted of  more  than  100  Frenchmen,  with  10  or  12  of  "the 
most  reliable  Nepissing  Indians  of  the  Lake,"  i.e.,  Lake  of 
the  Two  Mountains,  above  Montreal,  and  a  great  number  of 
Toyagcurs,  who  were  going  up  to  trade.  This  imposing  flo- 
tilla, ""  while  passing  Fort  Frontcnac,  made  a  strong  impres- 
sion on  the  Iroquois  and  other  nations  it  met."  So  wrote 
the  Governor  to  the  Minister;18  and,  he  adds,  "the  news  of 
its  approach,  I  think,  determined  more  than  anything  else, 
the  principal  chiefs  of  Detroit  to  come  to  Montreal." 

l"p    the    Niagara    and    through   Lake   Erie    the    great    Con- 

i"  Hc¥  was  the  Sieur  de  Blainville,  but  has  been  inaccurately  designated  by 
writers  as  Bienville,  and  even  Bienville  de  Celoron. 

is  Galissoniere  to  Count  de  Maurepas,  Quebec,  -2M  Oct.,  ITtS.  In  the 
Canadian  Archives  I  have  noted  the  following  in  reference  to  Celoron:  lie 
was  appointed  Fort  Major  ("  a  mini  mutant  snlentaire")  at  Detroit,  May 
-1:?,  1719.  brin.;  the  fir-t  to  fill  that  post.  He  received  12  livres  a  year,  and 
a  L'ratuity  of  :inoo  Ijvres  to  be  taken  from  the  rnuf/t'x  funds.  I.iinjr  infrac- 
tions were  iriven  for  his  conduct.  A  town  on  Chautauqua  Lake  and  an 
inland  in  the  Detroit  Itiver,  bear  hi^  name.  For  a  sketch  of  his  career,  by  C. 
M.  Hurton,  sec  Mich.  Pioneer  &  Hist.  Colls.,  XXXIV. 


406  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

voy  was  successfully  guided.  Speedily,  too,  for  Celoron  ar- 
rived back  at  Quebec  September  5th.  The  down  journey, 
especially  if  the  canoes  were  not  burdened  with  fur  packs, 
was  often  made  with  incredible  celerity. 


CHAPTER  XX 

TWO  FAMOUS   EXPEDITIONS 

CELORON'S  UNDERTAKING  OF  1749 —  ADVENTURES  OF  THE  BROTH- 
ERS JoNCAIRK  TlIE  ClIAUTAlTQUA  PORTAGE  GltEAT  BRIT- 
AIN WARNED  FROM  THE  OHIO  —  THE  ABBE  PICQUET  COMES  TO 
NIAGARA. 

LESS  than  two  months  after  Celeron's  discharge  of  this  duty, 
the  war  between  France  and  England  was  ended  by  the  Treaty 
of  Aix-la-Chnpelle,  signed  October  1,  1748.  Ostensibly,  this 
treaty  established  peace  between  the  two  Powers  ;  but  not  for 
an  hour  did  it  lessen  the  strife  for  the  control  of  trade  at 
Niagara  and  the  Lake  posts.  Of  even  greater  moment  was 
the  utter  failure  of  the  treaty  to  establish  boundaries  be- 
tween French  and  British  possessions  south  of  the  Lakes. 
France  had  long  claimed  the  region  south  of  Lake  Erie,  hav- 
ing no  more  substantial  support  for  the  claim  than  the 
shadowy  adventuring  of  La  Salle  nearly  80  years  before. 
Now  the  British,  regardless  of  French  assertions,  were  inso- 
lently taking  possession.  The  Ohio  Company,  a  Virginia  as- 
sociation with  a  royal  grant,  was  sending  its  traders  into  the 
great  valley  west  of  the  Alleghenics.  If  they  gained  the  In- 
dian trade,  more  or  less  certain  tribal  allegiance  would  follow. 
The  energetic  Galissonierc,  at  Quebec,  realized  that  the 
hour  for  aggressive  action  had  come.  Sustained  by  King 
and  Court,  he  fitted  out  an  expedition.  Its  object  was,  to 
show  both  to  British  and  to  Indians,  that  the  region  of  the 
';  Beautiful  River  "  belonged  to  France.  No  attempt  was  to 
be  made  to  build  forts  or  establish  garrisons;  but  British  in- 
truders were  to  be  warned  off,  and  the  resident  tribes  were 
to  be  pledged  anew  in  fealty  to  France.  The  t\vo  Powers 
being  now  at  peace,  warlike  methods  might  not  be  used  :  the 
most  impudent  of  traders  from  Virginia  or  Pennsylvania  might 
not  be  captured  or  killed;  he  could  just  be  told  to  get  out; 

407 


408  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

and  the  whole  vast  watershed  of  the  Ohio  was  to  be  claimed 
anew  for  France  by  the  singularly  peaceful  method  of  bury- 
ing, at  convenient  spots,  leaden  plates  inscribed  with  the  procla- 
mation that  France,  by  means  of  this  expedition  and  bits  of 
buried  lead,  had  repossessed  herself  of  her  own. 

Impotent  as  such  a  procedure  may  seem,  it  was  not  with- 
out precedent,  though  perhaps  it  had  never  been  relied  on 
under  such  discouraging  conditions.  The  Indian  was  too 
shrewd,  the  frontier  trader  too  insolent  or  indifferent,  to  be 
impressed  by  archaic  mummery. 

Ineffective  as  the  methods  to  be  used  may  seem,  they  were 
the  main  reliance  of  France  for  assertion  of  authority  in  this 
inland  empire.  It  was  her  first  show  of  force  in  the  region, 
where  heretofore  she  had  sent  only  a  few  emissaries  of  the  type 
of  Joncaire  the  elder.  The  gateway  to  the  region  was  the 
Niagara ;  and  the  chosen  leader  was  Celoron. 

The  force  gathered  under  his  command  left  La  Chine  on  the 
afternoon  of  June  15,  1749.  There  were  23  canoes,  carry- 
ing 250  men,  French  and  Indians.  There  were  eight  subaltern 
officers,  six  cadets,  an  armorer,  20  French  soldiers,  180  Can- 
adians, 30  Iroquois  and  25  Abenakis.  The  reader  will  note 
that  in  this  expedition,  which  historically  is  of  such  extraor- 
dinary import,  the  trained  soldiers  of  France  were  but  a 
handful.  It  was  the  Canadian  —  the  habitant  —  on  whom  the 
Governor  relied  for  strength,  endurance  and  knowledge  of 
waterways  and  woodcraft.  But  the  main  reliance,  the  prin- 
cipal influence  which  at  the  outset  seemed  to  insure  success, 
and  kept  the  men  from  degenerating  into  a  mere  rabble  of 
wilderness  wanderers,  was  Celoron  and  the  officers  under  him. 
They  were  a  picked  lot  of  fine  fellows,  experienced  in  fron- 
tier service  and  in  the  control  of  men,  white  and  Indian.  One 
of  them  was  de  Contrecoeur,  whose  part  in  our  regional  his- 
tory deserves  attention.  Ilis  full  name  is  written  Pierre  Claude 
de  Pecaudy  (or  Pecaudry),  Sicur  de  Contrcconir.  His  fa- 
ther, an  officer  in  the  regiment  of  Carignan,  had  been  ennobled, 
by  Letters  Patent,  January,  1661,  and  in  1672  secured  the 
Seigniory  of  Contrecoeur,  which  in  due  course  passed  to  Pierre, 
who  is  thereafter  known  as  De  Contrecoeur.  lie  spent  a  long 


TWO  FAMOUS  EXPEDITIONS  409 

life  as  a  soldier  for  France  in  Canada.  As  early  as  1710  we 
find  him  an  ensign  in  Acadia.  He  first  came  to  the  Niagara 
as  a  lieutenant  under  Captain  Duplcssis,  and  in  1747  suc- 
ceeded that  officer  in  command  of  Fort  Niagara.  Later  in  that 
year,  at  his  own  request,  he  was  relieved,  being  succeeded  by 
Captain  de  Raymond.  In  later  years  he  is  to  bear  a  con- 
spicuous part  in  the  war  which  was  the  natural  sequence  of  the 
expedition  in  which  we  now  find  him  engaged.1 

Still  more  notable  is  another  of  Celeron's  company:  Joseph 
Coulon  de  Villiers,  whose  name  appears  in  the  documents  some- 
times as  "  Captain  Coulon,"  sometimes  as  De  Villiers,  but  most 
often  as  De  Jumonville.  He  was  one  of  seven  brothers,  six  of 
whom  served  in  the  Canadian  wars  and  four  of  whom  are  more 
or  less  identified  with  the  Niagara  frontier.  A  younger 
brother,  Francois,  was  also  in  Celeron's  following.  A  few  years 
later  it  was  to  be  the  fate  of  Jumonville  to  fall  by  an  English 
bullet,  for  which  a  young  Colonial  officer  in  British  service,  by 
name  George  Washington,  was  held  responsible ;  and  it  was 
to  still  another  brother  of  this  same  family  De  Villiers  that 
Washington  surrendered,  July  4,  1754.  Some  further  note  of 
this  remarkable  family  will  be  made  in  due  course. 

Philippe  Thomas  de  Joncairc  (the  second  Sieur  de  Chabert), 
and  his  brother  Daniel  were  both  in  the  expedition.  Years 
after,  Daniel  wrote  of  it : 

In  the  spring  [1719]  I  went  down  the  Ohio  with  M.  de  Celoron 
and  Father  Bonneau,'-  royal  professor  of  hydrography  at  Quebec,  to 
take  possession  in  the  King's  name  with  the  accustomed  formalities. 
V,'e  were  escorted  by  a  detachment  of  2;>0  men. 

The  second  object  of  the  expedition  was  to  drive  out  the  English 
established  on  the  banks  of  this  river,,  and  to  punish  a  tribe  which 
had  killed  several  Frenchmen.  My  commission  did  not  extend  to  all 
that,  for  I  was  ordered  by  M.  de  La  Galissoniere  to  go  down  to 
Montreal:  but  the  commandant,  who  thought  my  presence  necessary. 

1  In    1'Vbruary,    17tS,    Contreccrur,    then    commandant    at    Fort    X'iajrara, 
was  promoted  from  lieutenant  to  captain,  and  jriven  a  company.     De  Yassun, 
I.etrardeur  de  St.  Pierre  and  Marin  at  the  same  time  received  a  like  promo- 
tion. 

2  So   printed    in   the   Joncaire   Jfi'moire.     Obviouslv    an   inadvertence    for 
llonneoamps. 


410  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

kept  me,  and  took  upon  himself  to  have  the  Governor  approve  this 
counter  order. 

We  thought  we  should  perish  several  times  in  this  journey,  en- 
countering enemies  greatly  superior  in  number;  my  brother  would 
have  been  burned  if  he  had  not  called  out  his  own  name,  and  awed 
these  people  by  the  fear  of  having  the  arms  of  the  Five  Nations 
turned  against  them.  These  savages  have  said  since,  that  but  for 
my  brother  and  myself,  not  a  Frenchman  would  have  escaped.3 

Among  others  who  accompanied  Celoron  were  his  son;  and 
the  Sieur  de  Niverville,  who  was  of  the  Boucher  family  —  prob- 
ably Joseph,  eldest  son  of  Jean  Baptiste  Boucher.  Joseph  was 
an  ensign  when  serving  with  Celoron ;  later  he  is  mentioned 
as  lieutenant. 

In  some  respects,  the  most  important  member  of  the  party, 
next  to  Celoron  himself,  was  the  Rev.  Jean  de  Bonnecamps, 
"  professor  of  hydrography  "  in  the  Jesuit  College  at  Que- 
bec ;  a  singular-enough  chair  of  learning  for  the  time  and  place, 
but  one  that  was  maintained  from  1671  until  the  Conquest. 
Father  Bonnecamps  styles  himself  "  Jesuitic  Mathematicien." 
He  had  mastered  astronomical  reckoning,  and  on  the  march  he 
made  frequent  record  of  latitude  and  longitude.  His  journal, 
and  that  of  Celoron,  are  the  principal  sources  of  information 
regarding  the  expedition.4 

The  expedition  set  out  in  high  spirits,  June  15th.  Two 
days  later,  at  the  Cedars,  the  canoe  of  "  Monsieur  de  Jon- 
caire  "•  —Father  Bonnecamps'  journal  does  not  say  which  Jon- 
caire  —  was  lost,  and  one  of  the  four  men  in  it  "  perished  be- 
fore our  eyes,  without  our  being  able  to  give  him  the  slightest 

s  From  the  "  Mcmoire  de  Daniel  de  Joncaire-Chabert,"  etc.,  being  a  part 
of  the  report  of  the  "  Commission  elablie  pour  I' affaire  du  Canada,"  Paris, 
1763.  For  the  use  of  a  copy  of  this  excessively  rare  volume,  acknowledgment 
is  herewith  made  to  Mrs.  John  P.  Bronson,  of  Monroe,  Mich.,  whose  great- 
grandfather was  Francis,  son  of  Daniel  de  Joncaire-Chabert. 

*  Both  documents  were  discovered,  in  Paris  depositories,  by  the  late 
O.  H.  Marshall  of  Buffalo;  to  whose  researches  all  subsequent  students  of 
this  episode  are  indebted. 

The  Pere  Bonnecamps  returned  to  France  in  1757.  On  his  representation 
that  he  had  received  800  livres  per  annum  in  Canada,  he  was  given  a  gratuity 
of  600  livres  and  sent  to  live  in  Touraine  "  where  all  the  officers  from  Canada 
are  stopping."— Orders  of  the  King,  and  Minutes,  Oct.  9,  17GJ. 


TWO  FAMOUS  EXPEDITIONS  411 

aid.  This,"  adds  the  reverend  chronicler,  "  was  the  only  man 
we  lost  during  the  expedition."  Eight  days  later  they  reached 
the  mouth  of  the  Oswegatchie,  now  Ogdensburg,  where  the 
Sulpitian  missionary,  the  Abbe  Picquet,  had  just  begun  his 
establishment.  They  found  him  "  lodged  under  a  shelter  of 
bark,  in  the  midst  of  a  clearing  of  nearly  40  arpents."  Close 
by  was  the  palisaded  fort,  70  feet  square,  which  he  had  built. 
His  purpose  was  to  gather  at  this  place  as  many  Indians  as 
he  could  bring  under  the  influence  of  France  and  Christian- 
ity. He  is  destined  to  win  a  marked  success  and  to  play  an 
extraordinary  part  in  colonial  history;  but  when  Celoron  and 
his  people  paused  there,  "  his  wliole  village  consisted  of  two 
men,  who  followed  us  into  the  Beautiful  River,"  i.e.  the 
Ohio. 

The  season  was  propitious,  the  lake  was  calm,  and  on  July 
6th,  the  expedition  entered  the  mouth  of  the  Niagara.  No 
Convoy  ever  caused  such  excitement,  for  here  was  an  extraor- 
dinary errand.  This  large  force  were  to  cross  to  the  south 
shore  of  Lake  Erie,  climb  through  the  forest  over  the  water- 
shed, and  by  waterways  which  the  red  man  knew  but  which  had 
seldom  been  used  by  white  men,  were  to  enter  that  delectable 
but  debated  land  of  the  Beautiful  River. 

Father  Bonnccamps'  journal  holds  some  observations  which 
should  have  place  in  these  pages. 

Of  Lake  Ontario  he  notes  that  the  waters  "  are  very  clear 
and  transparent;  at  17  and  18  feet,  the  bottom  can  be  seen 
as  distinctly  as  if  one  saw  it  through  a  polished  glass.  They 
have  still  another  property,  very  pleasant  to  travelers  —  that 
of  retaining  great  coolness  in  the  midst  of  the  suffocating 
heat  which  one  is  sometimes  obliged  to  endure  in  passing  this 
lake." 

The  condition  of  Fort  Niagara  during  its  first  decade  has 
already  been  shown.  In  17!56  its  armament  was  six  small 
cannon.  In  1745  there  were  but  four  efficient  cannon,  though 
the  fluctuating  garrison  reached  100  men.  Now,  four  years 
later,  Father  Bonnecamps,  though  he  does  not  tell  the  strength 
of  armament  or  garrison,  draws  a  good  picture  of  the 
place: 


413  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

The  Fort  of  Niagara  is  a  square  made  of  palisades,  faced  on  the 
outside  of  oak  timbers,  which  bind  and  strengthen  the  whole  work. 
A  large  stone  barrack  forms  the  curtain-wall,  which  overlooks  the 
lake;  its  size  is  almost  the  same  as  that  of  Fort  Frontenac.  It  is 
situated  on  the  eastern  bank  of  the  channel  by  which  the  waters  of 
Lake  Erie  discharge  themselves.  It  will  soon  be  necessary  to  re- 
move it  elsewhere,  because  the  bank,  being  continually  undermined 
by  the  waves  which  break  against  it,  is  gradually  caving  in,  and  the 
water  gains  noticeably  on  the  fort.  It  would  be  advantageously 
placed  above  the  waterfall,  on  a  fine  plateau  where  all  canoes  are 
obliged  to  land  to  make  the  portage.  Thus  the  savages,  people  who 
are  naturally  lazy,  would  be  spared  the  trouble  of  making  three 
leagues  by  land;  and  if  the  excessive  price  of  merchandise  could  be 
diminished,  that  would  insensibly  disgust  the  English,  and  we  could 
see  the  trade  which  is  almost  entirely  ruined,  again  flourishing. 

An  artillery  return  for  Fort  Niagara  in  1749  shows  that  it 
had  four  iron  guns  throwing  2-pound  balls,  four  others  for 
1^-pound  balls,  a  6-inch  iron  mortar,  one  mortar  for  gren- 
ades, five  swivels,  and  13  iron  shells  (boites  a  pierriers). 

Our  "  Jesuit-Mathematician  "  was  not  the  first  to  suggest 
that  the  fort  would  have  been  better  placed  above  the  falls; 
nor  was  he  to  be  the  last,  as  we  shall  see,  to  comment  on  the  en- 
croachment of  Lake  Ontario. 

On  July  6th  and  7th  he  "  observed  the  western  amplitude  of 
the  sun,  when  it  sets  in  the  lake."  It  gave  him  6°  30"  north- 
west for  the  variation  of  the  compass ;  he  found  the  latitude  of 
the  fort  to  be  43°  28'.  We  know  it  to-day  as  43°  15'. 

Celoron,  who  crossed  Lake  Ontario  by  a  different  route  than 
that  taken  by  his  Indians,  at  Quinte  fell  in  with  La  Naudicre, 
his  lieutenant  of  the  year  before,  who  assured  him  that  the 
nations  around  Detroit,  having  learned  of  his  proposed  march, 
were  ready  to  join  him  at  the  first  invitation.  He  did  "  not 
give  much  "  (Je  ne  donnai  pas  beaucoup,  etc.),  he  says,  for 
Indian  promises,  but  none  the  less  he  hastened  on  to  Niagara, 
where  he  overtook  Jacques  Charles  de  Sabrevois,  on  his  way 
to  his  command  at  Detroit.  They  conferred  together ;  Sa- 
brevois passed  on  up  the  portage,  as  did  Contrecffiur  with  the 
canoes  that  had  arrived.  Meanwhile  Celoron,  waiting  at  Fort 


TWO  FAMOUS  EXPEDITIONS  413 

Niagara  for  the  Indian  contingent,  wrote  to  Chevalier  de 
Longueuil,  stating  what  he  had  learned  from  La  Naudiere  and 
begging  that,  if  the  Detroit  Indians  were  still  of  a  mind  to 
join  him,  their  setting-out  be  hastened,  so  that  they  could 
meet  him  at  the  Scioto  between  August  9th  and  12th;  but  if 
they  had  changed  their  minds,  he  wished  to  be  informed  of  that 
as  well. 

By  the  8th,  the  entire  army  had  passed  up  the  portage,  and 
four  days  later  were  "  encamped  at  the  little  rapid  at  the  en- 
trance of  Lake  Erie,"  that  is,  within  or  opposite  the  present 
site  of  Buffalo.  Oddly  enough,  no  mention  is  made  by  any  of 
the  four  men  who  were  in  the  company,  and  wrote  of  the  ex- 
pedition— -  Celoron,  Bonnecamps,  de  Lery  or  Daniel  de  Jon- 
caire  - — -of  Buffalo  Creek,  though  they  all,  probably,  became 
more  or  less  familiar  with  it.  Father  Bonnecamps  gives  us 
a  little  description  of  the  portage  and  the  cataract: 

The  channel  which  furnishes  communication  between  the  two 
lakes  is  about  nine  leagues  in  length.5  Two  leagues  above  the  fort 
the  portage  begins.  There  are  three  hills  to  climb,  almost  in  suc- 
cession. The  third  is  extraordinarily  high  and  steep;  it  is,  at  its 
summit,  at  least  300  feet  above  the  level  of  the  water.  If  I  had 
my  gn.phometer,  I  could  have  ascertained  its  exact  height;  but  I 
had  left  that  instrument  at  the  fort,  for  fear  that  some  accident 
might  happen  to  it  during  the  rest  of  the  journey.  When  the  top 
of  this  last  hill  is  reached,  there  is  a  level  road  to  the  other  end  of 
the  portage;  the  road  is  broad,  fine  and  smooth. 

The  famous  waterfall  of  Niagara  is  very  nearly  equidistant  from 
the  two  lakes.  It  is  formed  by  a  rock  cleft  vertically,  and  is  133 
feet,  according  to  my  measurement,  which  I  believe  to  be  exact.  Its 
figure  is  a  half-ellipse,  divided  near  the  middle  by  a  little  island. 
The  width  of  the  fall  is  perhaps  three-eighths  of  a  league.  The 
water  falls  in  foam  over  the  length  of  the  rock,  and  is  received  in  a 
large  basin,  over  which  hangs  a  continual  mist. 

The  Indians  for  whom  Celoron  waited  at  Fort  Niagara,  had 
again  to  be  tarried  for  at  the  Lake  Erie  end  of  the  river. 
"  We  remained  in  our  camp  at  the  Little  Rapid,*'  wrote  Fa- 

••  The  French  league  is  usually  reckoned  as  two  and  a  half  miles.  The 
actual  length  of  the  Niagara  River  is  :?7  miles. 


414  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

ther  Bonnecamps  on  the  13th,  "  to  await  our  Indians  who  were 
amusing  themselves  with  drinking  rum  at  the  portage,  with  a 
band  of  their  comrades  who  were  returning  from  Oswego." 
Later,  when  a  similar  delay  occurred,  he  notes  in  his  journal 
that  the  savages  are  "  a  class  of  men  created  in  order  to  ex- 
ercise the  patience  of  those  who  have  the  misfortune  to  travel 
with  them."  On  the  14th  the  fleet  entered  Lake  Erie,  but  a 
heavy  head  wind  drove  them  to  an  early  camp,  "  some  leagues 
above  the  Little  Rapid,"  says  Celoron.  They  were  on  the 
south  shore,  with  which  Celoron  was  not  familiar.  The  first 
camp,  probably  in  the  little  bay,  not  far  beyond  the  south- 
western limits  of  Buffalo  or  its  steel-making  suburb  of  Lacka- 
wanna,  was  made  under  guard  of  40  men. 

On  the  15th,  an  early  start  was  had,  in  the  hope  of  reach- 
ing the  place  of  portage,  but  Celeron's  own  canoe  struck  a 
rock  ledge  which  came  near  the  surface,  some  distance  from 
shore.  "  But  for  quick  help,"  he  records,  "  I  and  all  my  crew 
would  have  drowned."  This  mishap,  probably  in  the  vicinity 
of  Stony  Point,  sent  them  ashore  to  mend  their  broken  boat 
and  delayed  them  so  that  it  was  noon  of  the  16th  before  the 
place  of  portage  was  reached.  This  was  the  mouth  of  the 
stream  which  the  French  called  Riviere  aux  pommes  —  Apple 
River  —  but  which,  since  permanent  settlement  in  the  region, 
has  been  known  as  Chautauqua  Creek.  The  lake  shore  at 
this  point  was  but  an  open  roadstead,  beset  with  rocks  and  un- 
sheltered. The  place  had  however  long  been  used  by  the  In- 
dians in  passing  from  Lake  Erie  to  the  Ohio  Valley.  By  this 
route,  too,  six  }Tears  before,  Douville  de  la  Saussaye  had  prob- 
ably passed  on  his  mission  to  the  Shawanese.  In  the  present 
expedition  he  is  a  guide  for  Celoron  through  the  Chautauqua 
region. 

The  boats  were  beached  and  toil  began.  While  50  men,  un- 
der de  Villiers  and  Le  Borgne,  began  to  clear  a  road,  Celoron 
studied  the  landing  place  "  in  case  it  should  be  desired,  here- 
after, to  make  a  settlement."  He  saw  no  advantages  and  many 
obstacles.  "  The  lake  is  so  shallow,  on  the  south  side,  that 
barques  can  come  only  within  half  a  league  of  the  portage. 
There  is  no  isle  or  harbor  which  offers  shelter  ;  thev  would  have 


TWO  FAMOUS  EXPEDITIONS  415 

to  anchor  and  unload  by  means  of  bateaux.  Gusts  of  wind 
arc  frequent,  and  I  think  they  would  be  in  danger.  Moreover, 
there  is  no  native  village  at  this  place." 

The  opening  of  the  portage  road  was  excessively  hard  work. 
Some  eight  miles  to  the  southward  was  "  Chatakoin,"  on  which 
they  planned  to  launch  their  canoes  and  float  easily  down  by 
the  Outlet  and  connecting  streams,  into  the  Ohio.  But  the  lake 
lay  730  feet  above  Lake  Erie,  and  to  reach  it  an  elevation  of 
at  least  1000  feet  had  to  be  overcome.  The  way,  broad 
enough  and  clear  enough  for  the  carrying  of  canoes,  was  to 
be  made  for  much  of  the  distance  up  the  long  steep  slope  of 
the  divide,  through  a  heavy  forest  growth  of  oak,  maple,  beech 
and  other  native  hard  woods,  mingled  with  pine  and  hemlock. 
The  route  cut  out  was  nearly  ten  miles  in  length  and  for  the 
most  part  may  still  be  traced.  The  modern  road  coincides 
with  the  original  path  for  some  distance.6 

On  the  17th,  about  two  and  a  half  miles  were  opened;  on 
the  18th,  scarce  half  as  much.  Besides  the  fatigue  which  the 
men  experienced,  in  cutting  and  climbing  on  the  steep  slopes, 
heavy  rain  fell ;  but  Celoron  philosophically  reflected  that  if 
it  delayed  progress,  it  would  also  raise  the  streams,  by  which 
he  hoped  to  float  southward.  Half  a  league  was  the  record 
for  the  19th.  Two  more  days  they  crawled  on;  and  on  the 
22d  stood  on  the  Chautauqua  strand,  with  a  "  passably  good  " 
road  behind  them,  over  which  all  the  impedimenta  were  brought. 
One  day  they  rested  on  the  shore  of  Lake  Yjadakoin,  as  Bonne- 
camps  writes  it ;  and  at  noon  of  the  23d  the  flotilla  paddled 
swiftly  past  the  pleasant  shores  where  in  modern  days  of  ease 
countless  thousands  resort  for  intellectual  uplift,  or  such  re- 
newal of  physical  vigor  as  green  woods  and  pure  waters  give. 

Celoron  and  his  army  had  advanced  to  the  Chautauqua 
portage,  before  news  of  their  proceedings  was  published  in 
New  York.  On  July  17th,  the  Xerc  York  Gazette  had  intelli- 
gence from  Thomas  Maddox,  "  an  Englishman  who  is  the  King's 
interpreter,"  that  a  thousand  French  and  Indians  were  going 
to  a  place  "  called  La  Belle  river,  about  300  leagues  from  Can- 

'•  .s> c  "Tlu-  Old  Port ;iirc  Hoa<1."  by  IT.  C.  Taylor,  M.  D.,  Fmlonia,  X.  Y., 
1891. 


416  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

ada,  on  a  branch  of  Mississippi  River,  in  order  to  destroy  some 
Indians  that  were  under  the  allegiance  of  the  Crown  of  Eng- 
land, and  to  drive  off  the  English  who  were  building  a  fort 
there."  When  the  Mayor  of  Albany  heard  of  it,  he  remarked 
that  the  place  was  supported  by  the  Pennsylvania  Government ! 
New  York  was  not  concerned  in  the  matter.  A  few  years  later 
it  found  itself  very  much  concerned. 

Just  prior  to  Celeron's  invasion,  the  Governor  of  Pennsyl- 
vania had  sent  12  barrels  of  gunpowder  to  the  Indians  of  the 
Ohio.  Naturally,  they  looked  to  Pennsylvania  for  backing,  in 
their  resistance  to  the  French. 

At  the  Outlet,  Celoron  found,  not  the  swollen  stream  he 
had  hoped  for,  but  "  barely  two  or  three  inches  of  water." 
The  boats  were  unloaded  and  the  goods  sent  across  a  portage 
which  La  Saussaye  knew.  Days  of  many  difficulties  followed, 
but  on  the  29th  their  canoes  floated  in  the  deep  water  of  the 
Allegheny  at  the  mouth  of  the  Conewango.  The  way  of  the 
Beautiful  River  was  clear  before  them.7 

Celoron  made  his  way  down  the  Conewango,  the  Allegheny 
and  the  Ohio  as  far  as  the  mouth  of  the  Great  Miami,  which 
he  reached  August  28th.  Six  of  the  lead  plates  were  buried: 

7  The  author  made  inquiry  regarding  this  portage,  of  the  Hon.  Obed 
Edson,  a  resident  of  the  region  and  close  student  of  its  history.  Mr.  Edson 
replied:  "The  short  portage  made  by  Celoron,  of  three-fourths  of  a 
league,  I  suppose  was  made  before  he  entered  the  real  rapids  that 
he  describes.  These  rapids  began  where  the  traction  line  crosses  the 
Chadokoin  at  Jamestown.  Above  these  rapids  is  a  smoother,  slow  water, 
as  far  up  as  the  foot  of  the  lake.  Late  in  the  season  (this  was  July  2,3th ) 
the  water  is  often  low  in  some  —  not  all  —  places,  so  that  loaded  boats 
could  not  well  pass  over  them.  In  the  rapids  below  Jamestown,  the  swift 
running  of  the  same  stream  in  the  same  direction  would  aid  the  passage  of 
the  boats  and  thus  obviate  the  necessity  for  a  portage.  Celoron  writes: 
"Before  entering  the  place  [i.  e.,  the  rapids]  the  greater  part  of  the  bag- 
gage was  unloaded,  with  people  to  carry  it  to  the  rendezvous.'  Where  the 
rendezvous  was  is  obscure,  but  I  believe  it  was  at  or  near  the  hills  of  James- 
town, and  at  the  head  of  the  rapids.  This  short  portage  along  the  Outlet 
to  the  real  rapids  seems  to  have  occurred  on  the  2Uh,  for  on  the  morning 
of  the  25th  a  consultation  was  had  which  resulted  in  Joncaire  being  sent 
upon  a  mission  with  some  savages  to  PaiUe  Coupee.  The  canoes  were  re- 
paired and  probably  the  26th  was  occupied  in  passing  the  many  rapids  be- 
tween their  commencement  at  the  trolley  bridge  at  Jamestown,  and  their 
ending  at  Levant,  a  distance  of  three  leagues  (71/.  miles),  where,  on  the 
morning  of  the  27th,  they  first  found  the  still  waters  of  the  Cassadacru." 


TWO  FAMOUS  EXPEDITIONS  417 

One  on  the  south  bank  of  the  Allegheny  (which  in  Celeron's 
time  was  regarded  as  the  Ohio),  opposite  the  mouth  of  the 
Conewango,  near  present  Warren,  Pa. ;  one  about  nine  miles 
below  the  mouth  of  French  Creek,  under  a  great  rock  en- 
graved with  strange  hieroglyphics ; s  a  third  at  a  point  not 
clearly  indicated,  but  probably  at  the  junction  of  the  Ohio 
and  Wheeling  Creek,  on  the  north  bank  of  the  latter  stream ; 
a  fourth,  on  the  right  bank  of  the  Muskingum,  at  its  junc- 
tion with  the  Ohio ;  a  fifth,  at  the  confluence  of  the  Kanawha ; 
and  a  sixth  at  the  mouth  of  what  Celoron  calls  Rock  River 
(Riviere  a  la  Roche},  now  known  as  the  Great  Miami. 

Two  of  the  plates  have  been  found.  In  1798,  boys  bathing 
at  the  mouth  of  the  Muskingum  found  a  plate  of  lead  in 
the  river  bank,  inscribed  in  a  strange  tongue.  If  they  knew 
nothing  of  French,  or  of  the  ancient  claims  of  France,  they 
did  know  the  value  of  lead.  The  plate  was  taken  home  and 
a  part  of  it  used  for  bullets.  Many  years  later,  the  rest  of 
it,  with  its  mutilated  inscription,  came  to  the  knowledge  of 
Caleb  Atwater,  a  historian.  lie  sent  it  to  Governor  DC  Witt 
Clinton,  who  gave  it  to  the  American  Antiquarian  Society,  in 
whose  building  at  Worcester,  Mass.,  it  is  now  preserved. 

In  18i6  a  boy  playing  on  the  margin  of  the  Kanawha,  found 
the  plate  which  Celoron  buried  there  97  years  before.  This 
plate  is  now  in  the  keeping  of  the  Virginia  Historical  Society. 
So  far  as  known,  the  others  have  not  been  recovered,  though  in 
some  cases  considerable  search  has  been  made. 

The  plates  were  11  inches  long,  71/-:  inches  wide  and  ^s 
inch  thick.  The  inscriptions  were  identical,  except  as  to 
the  place  and  date  of  burial.  The  name  of  the  engraver, 
Paul  de  Brosse,  appeared  on  the  reverse.  They  were  evidently 
prepared  in  France,  or  possibly  at  Quebec,  and  were  a  most 
precious  part  of  Celoron's  luggage.  As  it  happened,  one 
of  them  was  stolen,  on  the  Niagara,  or  between  the  Niagara 
portage  and  the  Chautauqtia  outlet.  This  we  learn,  not  from 
the  French  /journals,  but  from  the  correspondence  of  Colonel 

s  Tlit1  rock,  Ioni_r  famous  in  Western  Pennsylvania  history,  is  pictured, 
mid  the  inscription  Driven  in  facsimile,  in  Schoolcraft's  ''  Indian  Tribc.s  in  the 
U.  S.,"  vol.  VI.  p.  17,'. 


418  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

William  Johnson,  to  whom  a  sachem  of  the  Cayugas  carried 
a  lead  plate,  saying  that  the  Senecas  "  got  it  by  some  artifice 
from  Jean  Coeur  (Joncaire)."  Johnson  referred  it  to  Gov- 
ernor Clinton,  who  in  reporting  the  matter  to  the  Lords  of 
Trade  wrote  that  he  "  would  send  to  their  Lordships  in  two 
or  three  weeks  a  plate  of  lead,  full  of  writings,  which  some 
of  the  upper  nations  of  Indians  stole  from  Jean  Ceur,  the 
French  interpreter,  at  Niagara,  on  his  way  to  the  river 
Ohio."  9  Its  mysterious  character  aroused  in  the  Indian  mind 
an  uneasiness  which  Johnson  did  not  fail  to  stimulate,  dwell- 
ing in  harangues  to  them  on  the  dire  evils  sure  to  follow  if  the 
sinister  designs  of  the  French  went  unchecked.  Even  Gov- 
ernor Clinton's  letters  to  the  Lords  of  Trade  expressed  uncom- 
mon concern  at  the  land-grabbing  activity  of  the  French,  which 
contravened  the  treaties  between  friendly  Powers. 

In  reality,  Celeron's  expedition  accomplished  nothing  sub- 
stantial. At  the  burial  of  each  plate,  the  officers  and  men 
were  mustered  with  all  possible  show  of  power  —  and  finery, 
the  Arms  of  Louis  XV  were  nailed  to  a  tree,  the  plate  was 
impressively  buried,  and  a  formal  Proces  Verbal,  or  decree  of 
taking  possession,  was  drawn  up  and  signed  by  the  officers, 
those  who  could  not  write  meanwhile  contributing  to  the  oc- 
casion with  shouts  of  "Vive  le  Roi,"  and  more  or  less  discreet 
consultation  of  the  commissariat.  The  on-looking  savages, 
more  entertained  than  edified,  refused  to  be  impressed;  it  was 
not  the  sort  of  show  of  force  for  which  they  had  respect.  And 
as  for  the  British  traders  in  the  region,  they  paid  very  little 
attention  to  the  warnings  and  threats  of  Celoron,  knowing 
that  the  resident  tribes  were  friendly  to  them.  Even  coun- 
cils conducted  by  the  adroit  Joncaire  failed  to  win  from  the 
Indians  any  satisfactory  pledges,  and  by  the  time  the  Great 
Miami  was  reached  Celoron  was  aware  that  his  arduous  mis- 
sion was  a  failure.  He  was  amazed  at  the  number  of  English 
traders  in  the  region.  At  the  village  of  Chiningue  —  later 
known  as  Logstown,  near  the  site  of  the  modern  town  of 

o  It  cannot  he  stated  what  hecarne  of  the  stolen  plate.  Xo  further  men- 
tion of  it  is  found  in  the  correspondence  of  Gov.  Clinton  and  the  Lords  of 
Trade. 


'  Ml     t-*v  '*!>,»*'      *•*     *«» 

v-#>  5S?.tiTX.«  X  M 

*°-  <!£  w  ^  >  " 

A>  V  ^  f  T  H  -^   >  , 


TWO  FAMOUS  EXPEDITIONS  419 

Economy,  Pa. —  ho  encountered  10  traders  from  the  English 
colonies;  even  the  British  flag  was  flying  there,  the  first,  ap- 
parently, to  be  shown  west  of  the  Alleghenics.  Celoron  or- 
dered the  intruders  out  of  this  "  French  territory."  The  Eng- 
lish leader,  "  who  saw  us  ready  to  depart,"  says  Bonnecamps, 
"  acquiesced  in  all  that  was  exacted  from  him,  firmly  resolved, 
no  doubt,  to  do  nothing  of  the  kind  as  soon  as  our  backs  were 
turned."  No  one  was  in  the  least  deceived.  Several  other 
Englishmen  were  encountered,  with  like  result. 

Celoron's  main  reliance,  for  controlling  the  Indians,  was  on 
Joncaire  and  his  brother  Chabert.  There  was  no  one  among 
all  the  French  in  America  of  greater  influence  among  the 
tribes;  }*et  even  they  not  only  found  themselves  powerless,  but 
in  danger.  On  one  occasion,  when  the  two  Joncaires  and 
Nivervillc  were  sent  in  advance  to  announce  the  coming  of 
Celoron,  the  savages  fired  on  them,  the  musket-balls  piercing  the 
French  flags ;  and  when  Joncaire  began  to  harangue  them,  one 
of  the  savages  cried  out  that  the  French  were  coming  to  destroy 
them ;  the  excited  horde  seized  the  three  envoys  and  were  about 
to  burn  them  when  a  friendly  Iroquois  appeased  the  others, 
who  were  Shawancsc,  "  by  assuring  them  that  we  had  no  evil 
designs."  This  recalls  the  occasion  referred  to  by  Chabert  in  a 
passage  already  quoted.10 

The  English  had  been  kept  well  informed.  It  was  the  sachem 
Ilcndrick  who  carried  news  of  the  expedition  to  Colonel  William 
Johnson,  and  through  him  to  Governor  Clinton ;  and  it  was 
Celoron  himself  who  wrote,  August  10th,  from  his  camp  on  the 
Ohio  to  Governor  Hamilton  at  Philadelphia,  that  he  had  ex- 
pelled the  English  traders  from  that  region. 

Turning  northward,  Celoron  hastened  into  a  safer  neigh- 
borhood. In  37  days  the  expedition  made  its  way  from  the 
mouth  of  the  Great  Miami  to  Detroit,  reaching  that  post  Oc- 
tober 7th.  They  traveled  up  the  Great  Miami  to  Loramie 
Creek:  occupied  five  and  a  half  days  in  the  long  portage  to 
the  Maumee,  which  they  made-  with  the  help  of  horses  supplied 
by  Captain  Raymond,  in  command  at  Kiskakon,  now  Fort. 
Wayne,  Indiana.  Thence,  in  Indian  pirogues  —  not  canoes, 

10  See  page  310. 


420  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

but  dug-outs  —  they  descended  the  Maumee  to  Lake  Erie,  some 
of  them  going  overland  to  Detroit.  The  journey  was  not  with- 
out its  hardships  and  adventures,  upon  which  we  need  not 
here  dwell.  October  8th  the  party  again  set  out  by  canoe, 
skirted  the  north  shore  of  Lake  Erie  and  on  the  19th  arrived  at 
Fort  Niagara.  After  three  days  for  rest  and  repairs,  in 
which,  we  may  be  sure,  many  tales  of  the  Ohio  wilderness  were 
told,  the  party  set  out  once  more  along  the  south  shore  of 
Ontario.  It  was  a  hard  and  hazardous  traverse,  for  the  gales 
of  autumn  overtook  them.  On  November  10th,  Montreal  was 
reached  and  on  November  18th  Celoron  and  Father  Bonne- 
camps  arrived  at  Quebec,  five  months  and  18  da}Ts  after  having 
left  it.  By  the  priest's  computation  they  had  traveled  1200 
leagues ;  and  with  the  exception  of  Joncaire's  boatman,  acci- 
dentally drowned  at  the  outset,  not  a  life  had  been  lost. 

Mention  has  been  made  of  the  officers  named  Coulon  de  Vil- 
liers.  Of  no  one,  whose  history  pertains  to  the  Niagara  re- 
gion, not  excepting  even  the  Messrs.  Joncaire,  has  there  been 
more  error  and  confusion  in  printed  allusions  than  of  the 
family  Coulon  de  Villiers,  several  of  whose  members  were  on  the 
Lakes  and  the  Niagara.  A  few  facts  regarding  them,  mostly 
gleaned  from  documentary  sources,  may  be  here  submitted,  but, 
let  it  be  added,  with  no  assumption  of  infallibility. 

Nicolas  Antoine  Coulon  de  Villiers,  who  came  to  Canada 
near  the  close  of  the  Seventeenth  century,  in  1705  or  1706 
married  Angelique  Jarret  de  Vercheres,  a  sister  of  the  young 
Madeleine  de  Vercheres  whose  splendid  defense  against  an  Iro- 
quois  attack  in  1696  made  her  one  of  the  best-beloved  heroines 
in  Canadian  history.  Antoine  and  Angelique  gave  to  the  col- 
ony a  typical  family  of  that  day,  not  unworthy  to  be  remem- 
bered with  the  Le  Moynes.  Of  their  twelve  or  thirteen  chil- 
dren, at  least  four  shared  in  history-making  on  this  old  fron- 
tier of  France. 

Nicolas  Antoine  the  father,  about  1725,  replaced  M.  de 
Villedonne  as  commander  at  Fort  St.  Joseph  of  the  Illinois. 
With  the  Jesuit  priest  Charles  Michel  Mesaiger,  he  landed  at 
the  mouth  of  the  Niagara  before  Fort  Niagara  was  built,  and 
passed  over  the  portage  while  the  elder  Joncaire  yet  main- 


TWO  FAMOUS  EXPEDITIONS  121 

taincd  his  Magazin  Royal  under  the  heights  of  Lcwiston.  With 
liim,  or  soon  joining  him  in  the  West,  was  his  eldest  son,  also 
named  Nicolas  Antoine.  This  youth  again  passed  over  tin- 
Niagara  portage  in  the  fall  of  1730,  bearing  messages  from 
his  father's  post  to  Quebec. 

In  1731  the  elder  Coulon  de  Villiers  was  at  Fort  Niagara 
en  route  to  Quebec.  A  little  later  he  was  made  commandant 
at  Green  Bay,  with  the  rank  of  captain;  and  at  that  post  he 
was  killed  in  1733.11 

It  is  recorded  that  he  had  with  him  at  Green  Bay,  six  sons 
;uid  two  sons-in-law.  The  latter  were  Duplessis-Faber  and 
Dagneau  Douvillc.  One  of  the  sons,  Francois,  afterwards  the 
Chevalier  de  Villiers,  was  wounded;  and  with  his  brother-in- 
law,  Douville,  carried  to  Quebec  the  news  of  what  had  hap- 
pened at  Green  Bay.  The}'  probably  journeyed  by  the  Ni- 
agara route,  as  did  the  elder  brother  Nicolas  Antoine,  who 
signed  himself  "  Coulon  dc  Villiers,"  and  is  referred  to  in  docu- 
ments as  "  M.  Coulon."  He  was  made  lieutenant  in  1734,  and 
succeeded  his  father  in  command  at  Green  Bay,  and  later  at 
St.  Joseph  of  the  Illinois.  In  1712,  or  early  in  1713,  we 
find  him  again  at  Fort  Niagara,  on  his  way  to  Quebec,  where 
he  soon  after  married  under  the  name  and  title  of  Captain 
Antoine  Coulon,  Sieur  de  Villiers.  His  later  service  was  in 
eastern  Canada,  and  he  died  at  Montreal  in  1750,  having  won 
the  coveted  Cross  of  St.  Louis.12 

A  younger  and  more  famous  brother  was  Joseph  Coulon  de 
Villiers,  called  de  Jumonville.  Born  at  Vercheres  in  1718,  he 
was  a  lad  of  15  when  he  first  came  to  the  Niagara  in  1733, 
on  his  way  to  Green  Bay,  where  he  served  under  his  father. 
lie  came  again  in  1739,  as  did  also  his  brother  Francois, 
with  that  fine  company  of  young  soldiers  who  made  the  Chica- 

11  Ferland,   II,  110. 

i-  Numerous  writers.  Parkman  amon<r  them,  have  credited  to  this  Coulon 
de  Villiers  the  defeat  of  Washington  at  Fort  Necessity  in  17,>1:  hut  if  he 
died  in  IT.V),  MS  the  Abbe  Atnedee  (lOssrlin  asserts  in  his  pninstnkinir  study 
('•\\<.t<.-i  VH r  In  I'.niiilh-  Caiilnn  <]<•  r;//iYr.<,"  I. ('vis  1900),  the  hero  of  17.H 
\vas  obviously  not  Nicolas  Antoine.  The  Abbe  ( ios-elm's  monograph  rests  on 
records  found  in  pari-h  registers,  the  official  correspondence  of  Governors, 
and  other  original  sources. 


422      AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

saw  campaign.13  In  succeeding  years  he  saw  hard  service  in 
Acadia,  and  in  the  Mohawk  Valley,  where  in  1748  he  led  an 
expedition  against  the  English,  killing  14  or  15. 14  He  served 
with  Celoron  in  1749,10  as  did  his  brother  Fra^ois;  and  was 
again  on  the  Niagara  in  1754,  a  few  weeks  before  his  death. 
Of  his  last  coming  into  the  region  we  here  study,  further  note 
will  be  made  in  due  place. 

Jumonville's  death  left  but  two  brothers,  Louis  and  Fran- 
cois, both  older  than  himself.  It  was  the  former  who  was  to 
be  the  avenger  of  Jumonville ;  and  it  was  Fran£ois  —  after- 
wards styled  the  Chevalier  de  Villiers  —  who  was  to  share  in 
the  last  French  defense  of  the  Niagara,  and  there  become  a 
prisoner  of  the  English. 

An  episode  of  some  significance,  in  the  summer  of  1751,  was 
the  tour  around  Lake  Ontario  and  up  the  Niagara  made  by 
the  Sulpitian  missionary,  Fra^ois  Picquet.  No  other  man 
of  his  time,  save  possibly  Chabert  de  Joncaire,  exerted  a  greater 
influence  over  the  Indians  of  the  mid-lake  region. 

Born  at  Bourg  in  Bresse,  France,  December  4,  1708,  we 
find  him  at  the  age  of  27,  arrived  in  Montreal  a  member  of 
the  Company  of  St.  Sulpice.  In  the  five  or  six  years  follow- 
ing, while  fulfilling  his  priestly  duties  he  devoted  himself  to 
the  study  of  native  dialects.  Capable  and  exceptionally  zeal- 
ous, it  is  said  of  him  that  by  1740  he  "  made  known  the  sov- 
ereignty of  France  among  the  Algonquins,  Nipissings,  Iroquois 
and  Hurons."  At  the  mission  of  Lac  dcs  Deux  Montagnes  • — 
now  Oka,  near  Montreal  —  he  gained  such  mastery  of  the  Al- 
gonquin and  Iroquois  tongues  that,  says  Fournet,  "  he  surpassed 
the  ablest  orators  of  those  tribes."  10  The  mission  became 
populous,  a  Catholic  center  in  the  midst  of  pagan  tribes.  Visi- 
tors at  Oka  to-day  are  shown  the  Calvary  erected  by  Father 

13  MSS.,  Collection  Moreau  St.  Mfry  (Arch,  de  la  Marine;  copies  in  the 
Archives  nt  Ottawa),  vol.  44.  In  these  papers  one  finds  the  names  of 
"  M.  de  Villiers "  and  of  the  "  Chevalier  de  Villiers."  The  latter  was 
Francois. 

«  X.  Y.  Col.  Docs.  X,  168. 

15  This  service  of  Jumonville  is  not  mentioned  by  the  Abbe  Ami-dee  Gos- 
selin,  but  is  indicated  by  the  official  correspondence  of  the  time. 

IB  Article  "  Picquet  "  in  the  Catholic  Encyclopaedia, 


TWO  FAMOUS  EXPEDITIONS  423 

Picquct,  with  its  well-built  stations  stretching  along  the  moun- 
tain side  facing  the  lake. 

The  Abbe  Picquet's  influence  over  the  tribes  was  for  many 
years  combated  by  the  English.  During  the  inter-colonial 
strife  of  1743-48,  it  was  Picquet  who  held  the  Five  Nations  in 
virtual  neutrality,  while  the  tribes  which  were  open  allies  of  the 
French  harried  New  England  with  t'-eir  bloody  raids,  or  served 
as  scouts  and  aides  of  the  French  troops. 

In  June,  1749,  the  Abbe  founded  his  famous  mission  of  La 
Presentation,  now  the  city  of  Ogdensburg.  To  gather  recruits 
for  this  establishment  he  set  out,  early  in  the  summer  of  1751, 
on  a  tour  around  Lake  Ontario.  The  record  of  this  inter- 
esting journey  is  preserved  in  a  memoir  by  one  from  whom 
we  would  little  expect  a  chronicle  of  missionary  labors.  It 
was  written  by  Joseph  Jerome  de  Lalandc,  the  eminent  astron- 
omer, famed  alike  for  his  scientific  attainments  and  for  his 
lack  of  Christian  faith.  The  atheist  is  the  biographer  of  the 
missionary.  Born  in  1732,  in  Picquet's  native  town  of  Bourg, 
Lalande  was  but  28  when  the  Abbe  returned  to  France,  and 
but  20  when,  in  1753,  Picquet  visited  France.  It  was  then 
that  he  first  gave  Lalande  an  account  of  his  adventures.  "  A 
missionary,"  wrote  the  younger  man  of  the  elder,  "  praiseworthy 
for  his  zeal  and  for  the  services  which  he  has  rendered  to 
Church  and  State,  born  in  the  same  town  as  I,  and  with  whom 
I  have  been  intimate,  has  put  it  in  my  power  to  set  forth  his 
labors.  I  have  thought  this  account  worthy  of  place  in  the 
Lcttrcs  edifiantcs  .  .  .  and  have  been  pleased  to  be  able  to 
offer  honorable  testimony  to  the  memory  of  a  compatriot  and 
friend  as  estimable  as  the  Abbe  Picquet."  1( 

It  is  not,  however,  from  Lalande,  but  from  the  Abbe  Picquet's 
own  journal,18  that  we  draw  an  account  of  his  tour  around 
Lake  Ontario. 

i~"LfHrctt  /dififiiifrs  ct  rjtricitscs  (Mrni»ir<>s  <lrf>  7 w/r .•>•),"  Paris,  17S3, 
vol.  XXVI.  Andre'-  Chasrny's  recent  work,  "  l'n  dcfcnuciir  dc  la  Xnurellc 
I*ranc< .  r"nui<-"i.i  /''K^/IUI  '  L<  ('<ni<nl!i  n ,'  "  (1'arK  191!}).  draws  largely 
on  Lulande's  memoir,  tfcc  (il.ii>:  "  L<  l'\>iulut<  ur  dr  In  Prt'itantation,"  by  the 
Abbe  Animate  Go--elin.  Trails  Hoy.  Sue.  Canada.  1S91. 

iqMS.  copies  are  preserved  in  the  Canadian  Archives,  and  in  the  library 
of  the  Buffalo  Historical  Societv. 


424;  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

Setting  out  June  10th,  from  his  mission  at  the  mouth  of 
the  Oswegatchie,  the  little  flotilla,  consisting  of  a  "  king's 
bateau,"  in  which  were  the  missionary,  the  Chevalier  Lc 
Borgne,  and  six  Canadians,  and  a  bark  canoe  paddled  by  "  five 
faithful  savages,"  made  its  way  through  the  islands,  reaching 
Fort  Frontcnac  on  the  12th.  The  abbe  was  struck  by  the 
weak  and  half-abandoned  aspect  of  the  place,  where  thirty  sol- 
diers "  with  a  handful  of  militia  "  constituted  the  garrison. 
The  missionary  laments  that  the  bread  and  the  milk  were  bad 
and  there  was  "  not  brandy  enough  to  dress  a  wound." 

At  Kaoi  (Coui),  a  few  hours  to  the  west  of  Frontenac,  the 
missionary  was  amazed  to  encounter  a  negro,  a  fugitive  from 
Virginia,  who  informed  him  that  it  would  not  be  difficult  to 
draw  to  his  mission  "  most  of  the  negroes  and  negresses  of 
New  England  " —  evidently  meaning  the  English  colonies  — 
since  they  would  be  well  received  in  Canada  if  they  could  be 
given  assistance  during  the  first  year,  and  granted  lands  like 
the  habitants.  "  The  Indians,"  said  the  Virginia  refugee, 
"  would  gladly  serve  them  as  guides ;  the  negroes  would  be 
the  most  terrible  enemies  of  the  English,  realizing  that  they 
could  never  hope  for  pardon,  if  the  English  should  become 
masters  of  Canada ;  and  they  would  contribute  greatly  to  the 
development  of  the  colony  by  their  labor."  He  added  that 
there  were  also  Hollanders,  Lorrains  and  Swiss  who  would  fol- 
low the  example  of  the  blacks,  "  since  they  were  uncomfortable 
with  the  English  and  did  not  love  them." 

Considerable  might  be  gathered  regarding  the  negro  in  the 
Lakes  region  in  Colonial  times.  So  many  negro  slaves  ran 
away  to  the  French  in  Canada,  from  New  York  and  Albany, 
that  in  1745  the  New  York  Assembly  passed  an  Act  to  pre- 
vent it.  There  were  negroes  among  the  Indians  of  the  Lakes 
region  at  an  early  date  but  they  were  never  numerous.  In 
1736  Louis  Campau  had  two  negro  slaves  at  Detroit,  the 
presumption  being  that  they  had  gone  thither  by  way  of  the 
Niagara.  New  York  was  a  slave-holding  colony,  from  which 
some  negroes  made  their  way  into  the  Iroquois  country  and 
even  Canada.  In  January,  1753,  four  English  traders,  Alex- 
ander McGenty,  Jabcz  Evans,  David  Hendricks  and  William 


TWO  FAMOUS  EXPEDITIONS  425 

Powell,  were  taken  on  "  Kantucqui  "  River  near  the  Ohio,  by 
a  band  of  Caghnawagas,  who  plundered  them  and  brought  them 
to  Fort  Niagara,  whence  they  were  later  sent  to  Montreal. 
Their  captors  valued  each  man  at  -iOO  livrcs  ($80  to  $100), 
and  wanted  negro  boys  — "  little  slaves  "  —  in  exchange. 
The  proposition  and  basis  of  exchange,  roused  the  indigna- 
tion of  the  Pennsylvania  Gazette.  "  By  this  insulting  letter," 
it  said,111  "  we  may  see  the  contempt  in  which  we  are  held  by 
these  savages."  A  letter  in  French,  purporting  to  come  from 
the  chief  Ononraquiete,  had  reached  Colonel  Schuyler,  say- 
ing these  Indians  would  return  no  more  prisoners  alive  un- 
less paid  for.  "  If  they  are  suffered  to  go  on  in  this  man- 
ner," continued  the  Gazette,  "  and  to  make  a  trade  of  catching 
our  people  and  selling  them  to  us  again  for  4-00  livres  a  head, 
it  may  in  time  cost  us  more  to  satisfy  the  demands  of  that  hand- 
ful of  barbarians  than  would  serve  to  defend  the  Province 
against  all  its  enemies." 

The  memoir  does  not  state  whether  these  propositions  found 
favor  with  the  abbe.  Zealous  as  he  was  for  building  up  his 
mission,  we  find  no  mention  of  negro  or  other  recruits  there, 
save  his  beloved  Indians. 

Making  his  way  through  the  winding  passages  of  the  Bay 
of  Quinte,  the  Abbe  Picquet  next  visited  the  scene  of  the  early 
Sulpitian  mission  where,  as  early  as  1668,  two  young  priests, 
the  Abbe  Trouve  and  Francois  de  Salignac-Fenelon  —  a  relative 
of  the  renowned  author  of  "  Tclcmaquc^-  —had  labored  among 
fugitive  Cayugas.  Here,  too,  were  associations  of  Dollier  de 
Casson,  of  the  Abbe  d'Urfe  and  other  Sulpitian  missionaries 
whose  presence  here  more  than  eighty  years  before,  may  well 
have  made  this  part  of  his  journey  seem  to  the  Abbe  Picquet 
a  veritable  pilgrimage. 

Skirting  the  shore  to  the  westward,  he  arrived  at  the  fort 
of  Toronto,  June  2-Hh.  The  new  establishment  there  had  been 
officially  named  Fort  Rouille,  for  the  Count  de  Jotiy,  Antoine 
Louis  Rouille,  who  in  171!)  had  succeeded  Count  Maurepas  as 
Colonial  Minister  of  France.  The  Count  was  eminent,  es- 
cially  as  a  patron  of  letters  :  was  the  head  of  the  Royal  Li- 

™  Aug.  1.1,  ITJk 


426  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

brary  and  the  friend  of  authors ;  but  his  name  found  slight 
hold  in  the  Lake  Ontario  region,  and  the  Abbe  Picquet,  like  most 
of  the  men  of  his  time,  always  spoke  of  Fort  Rouille  as  the  fort 
of  Toronto. 

At  the  date  of  his  visit,  it  was  but  a  year  old.  The  bay 
and  river  of  Toronto  —  now  the  Humber  —  from  days  imme- 
morial had  been  part  of  a  traveled  highway  to  Lake  Simcoe 
and  the  Georgian  Bay.  The  mouth  of  the  river  had  long  been 
a  place  of  trade ;  but  no  substantial  buildings  were  erected 
here  until  the  spring  of  1750,  when  La  Galissoniere,  spurred 
on  by  the  increasing  trade  of  his  rivals  across  the  lake  at 
Oswego,  accomplished  here  the  erection  of  a  storehouse,  pro- 
tected by  a  stockade.  Fifteen  soldiers  and  a  few  workmen 
constituted  the  garrison.  In  fact,  during  its  first  winter,  there 
were  only  a  clerk  or  trader's  agent,  two  or  three  engages,  and 
a  few  Indians.  The  Abbe  Picquet  does  not  describe  the  build- 
ings, though  he  says  he  found  good  bread  and  wine  there 
and  everything  requisite  for  trade,  "  which  they  lack  at  all 
the  other  posts."  Captain  Pouchot,  who  saw  Fort  Rouille  a 
little  later,  found  it  a  palisaded  square  of  about  30  toises  (180 
feet),  with  flanks  of  15  feet.  The  curtains  formed  the  buildings 
of  the  fort.  He  thought  it  better  built  for  trade  than  for  de- 
fense. A  plan  of  Captain  Gother  Mann,  many  years  later, 
shows  five  buildings  within  the  French  stockade.20 

The  Mississagas  gathered  in  numbers  about  the  missionary 
within  the  stockade,  where  there  was  neither  church  nor  chapel, 
and  in  behalf  of  their  wives  and  children  begged  for  as  good 
treatment  as  the  Iroquois  had  had.  "  They  complained  that 
instead  of  building  a  church  for  them,  there  had  only  been 
provided  a  brandy  shop"  ("  qu'un  cabaret  d' eau-de-vie  "). 
Picquet  checked  them  in  their  fault-finding,  told  them  that  they 
had  been  treated  according  to  their  taste,  that  they  had  never 
shown  the  least  zeal  for  religion,  that  their  conduct  had  been 
opposed  to  it,  but  that  the  Iroquois,  on  the  contrary,  had 
shown  their  love  for  Christianity.  So  it  seemed,  no  doubt,  to 

20  "Plan  of  the  proposed  Toronto  Harbour,"  etc.,  Quebec,  Gth  Dec.,  1788. 
The  group  of  old  French  buildings  is  marked  on  the  map,  "  Ruins  of  a  trading 
fort,  Toronto." 


TWO  FAMOUS  EXPEDITIONS  427 

the  good  priest ;  though  from  the  general  trend  of  historical 
testimony  one  may  be  permitted  some  reservation  of  judg- 
ment. The  missionary  bethought  himself  in  time,  that  his  leave 
to  gather  recruits  for  his  mission  did  not  include  the  Mississa- 
gas ;  and  so,  although  they  indicated  a  readiness  to  follow  him, 
he  could  not  bid  them  do  so,  and  hastened  on  his  way. 

On  June  27th,  the  abbe  landed  at  Fort  Niagara.  It  was 
the  fete  of  the  holy  apostles  Peter  and  Paul,  and  the  mission- 
ary's first  act  was  to  celebrate  Mass  in  the  chapel  of  the  fort. 
He  makes  no  mention  of  the  resident  chaplain.  After  dinner, 
in  company  with  the  commandant,  M.  de  Becancour,  he  looked 
over  the  fort,  "  there  being  no  savages  with  whom  he  might 
speak." 

Triangular  in  form,  the  fort  presented  only  one  face  open 
to  land  attack.  That  was  300  feet  long,  looking  out  upon 
a  wood  from  which  it  was  separated  by  an  open  plain.  On 
this  side,  approach  was  easy.  On  the  other  sides,  it  com- 
manded at  once  both  lake  and  river,  to  the  north  and  to  the 
southwest,  where  its  walls  rose  above  natural  slopes  sufficiently 
steep  to  make  scaling  difficult.  The  visitor  commented  on  the 
wide  view  enjoyed  from  the  fort,  which  made  it  easy  to  see 
all  canoes  and  barques  which  came  to  land  there ;  "  but  the 
high  banks,"  he  wrote,  "  little  by  little  are  washed  away  by 
the  rain,  notwithstanding  the  great  expense  the  King  has  been 
to,  to  maintain  them."  This  encroachment  of  the  lake  con- 
tinued for  more  than  a  century.  There  were  originally  several 
rods  of  ground  to  the  north  of  the  stone  mess-house  or  "  cas- 
tle," so  that  the  garrison  garden  was  there.  Gradually  it 
crumbled  into  the  lake,  until,  in  the  latter  part  of  the  last  cen- 
tury, the  United  States  Government  put  in  protective  work 
which  appears  to  have  stayed  the  invasion  of  the  lake,  the  banks 
of  which,  at  this  point,  are  some  25  feet  high. 

Much  had  been  said,  even  in  Picquet's  day,  of  the  insecurity 
of  Fort  Niagara  from  this  cause.  lie  was  familiar  with  the 
complaint  current  at  Versailles,  that  the  site  was  an  unfortu- 
nate one,  involving  constant  cost  to  maintain  :  and  he  no  doubt 
was  aware  that  La  Galissoniere  had  but  recently,  in  all  seri- 
ousness, proposed  to  move  the  fort  to  the  other  side  of  the 


428  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

river,  now  the  site  of  Niagara-on-the-Lake.  "  It  is  evident 
to  me,"  wrote  Maurepas  to  La  Galissoniere,  "  that  by  the  bad 
choice  of  a  site  for  Fort  Niagara,  this  fort  is  exposed  to  con- 
tinued wearing  away  [of  the  earth  banks],  and  the  expenses 
for  repairs,  since  it  was  built  prove  only  too  well  the  truth  of 
it.  However,  before  the  King  shall  approve  the  proposition 
which  you  make,  of  transporting  the  fort  to  the  other  side  of 
the  river,  it  is  well  that  you  should  consider  more  fully  the 
advantages  to  follow  this  change,  not  only  as  regards  the  sol- 
idity of  the  fort,  but  in  its  effect  on  the  Indian  trade,  for  it 
has  been  urged  that  this  change  would  tend  to  stay  most  of 
those  who  go  to  Oswego."21 

The  abbe,  though  not  an  engineer,  came  to  the  conclusion 
that  the  present  site  was  not  so  bad  as  had  been  represented; 
and  recorded  the  opinion  that  the  space  between  the  high  land 
and  the  wharf  might  be  filled  in  so  as  to  support  it  and  make 
a  glacis  there. 

He  was  disappointed  not  to  find  at  the  fort  the  Indians 
whom  he  was  told  came  there  to  trade ;  and  set  out  for  the  port- 
age fort  above  the  falls  in  the  hope  of  finding  them  there. 
On  his  way  he  turned  aside  to  view  the  great  cataract,  of  which 
he  wrote: 

This  cascade  is  as  marvelous  for  its  height  and  the  volume  of 
water  which  descends  as  for  the  diversity  of  its  falls,  of  which  there 
are  six  principal  ones,,  separated  by  a  little  island,  which  puts  three 
to  the  north  and  three  to  the  south.  They  are,  together,  of  a  sin- 
gular symmetry  and  an  astonishing  effect.  It  is  one  of  the  mightiest 
cataracts  which  there  may  be  in  all  the  world.  We  heard  it,  far 
off.  Near,  one  is  well  compensated  for  the  deafening  noise  which 
the  waters  make  in  seeing  the  whirlpools  and  the  jets  which  shoot 
from  the  clear  and  limpid  depths,  bedecked  with  the  brilliant  colors 
of  the  rainbow.  The  falls  are  nearly  always  covered  with  mist. 

The  description  is  not  conspicuously  accurate.      The  Abbe 
Picquet  measured  the  height  of  the  fall  on  the  south  side  — 
doubtless   at  Prospect  Point  —  reporting  it   as   140   feet,  i.e., 

-i  Archives  du  Ministtre  des  Colonies,  series  B.  vol.  87,  p.  7. 


TWO  FAMOUS   EXPEDITIONS  12!) 

French  measure,  equivalent  to  119.2  English  feet;  an  approxi- 
mately accurate  measurement. 

On  June  29tli  the  missionary  and  his  companions  passed  up 
the  portage  and  sought  lodging  at  the  new  fort.  "  I  \vas  re- 
ceived by  M.  Chabert  Joncaire,"  he  wrote  in  his  journal,  "  with 
every  sort  of  politeness  and  with  much  joy  by  the  savages." 
His  description  of  Fort  Little  Niagara  has  already  been  given 
(p.  ,'379).  On  July  1st,  M.  de  Higauville,  fort  major  at, 
Niagara,  and  three  of  Abbe  Picquet's  Indians  went  up  to  the 
Little  Rapid  —  the  outlet  of  Lake  Erie — -and  exacted  a  prom- 
ise from  the  chief  residing  there,  that  lie  would  come  to  meet 
the  missionary. 

At  the  Little  Fort,  and  on  the  river  in  general,  the  abbe 
found  trade  depressed,  for  the  same  reason  that  lie  had  noted 
at  Frontenac  and  Niagara.  "The  savages,  who  come  there 
in  great  number,"  he  wrote  of  the  Portage,  "  had  every  dis- 
position to  carry  on  trade;  but  not  finding  what  they  want, 
they  go  on  to  Oswego."  He  deplored  the  carelessness  or  in- 
competence of  the  functionaries  of  the  Intendant,  the  more 
when  he  counted  on  occasion  as  many  as  fifty  canoes  on  the 
strand  under  the  palisades  of  the  Little  Fort.  lie  adds  the 
conviction  that  "  several  hundred  "  of  them  would  have  landed 
their  peltries  if  the  storehouse  had  been  better  provided  with 
goods  for  exchange, 

lie  was,  however,  gratified  to  meet  here  large  numbers  of 
the  Indians.  He  gathered  many  of  the  Senecas  about  him, 
talked  to  them  like  a  father,  counseled  them  to  beware  of 
brandy,  and  pledged  them  to  join  his  establishment  of  La 
Presentation.  They  seem  to  have  taken  the  summons  with 
great  seriousness,  for  as  a  guarantee  that  they  would  keen  their 

O  O  « 

word  they  gave  him  twelve  young  boys.  "  Parents,"  they  as- 
sured him,  "have  nothing  dearer  than  their  children.  Behold, 
we  give  vou  twelve  as  hostages,  and  as  proof  that  we  will  soon 
follow  you."  The  chief  of  the  Little  Rapid,  whom  Picquet's 
christiani/ed  Indians  had  exhorted  "like  veritable  apostles," 
assured  the  missionary  that  he  would  join  his  train  with  all  his 
family. 


•130  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

The  incident  introduces,  all  too  vaguely,  the  first  aborigine 
of  influence  and  authority  who  is  associated  with  the  present 
site  of  Buffalo.  We  do  not  know  his  name.  No  permanent 
Seneca  village  existed  hereabouts  at  that  period.  But  the 
"  Little  Rapid  "  was  the  outlet  of  Lake  Erie,  and  the  chief 
who  took  his  name  from  it  evidently  brought  his  people  to 
the  vicinity  for  fishing  and  a  temporary  camp.  He  antedated 
by  a  generation  the  Indians  who  are  the  first  we  know  by  name 
as  residents  of  the  region ;  and  appears  as  the  First  Citizen, 
if  not  the  first  "  Boss  "  of  the  site  over  which  now  spreads  the 
city  of  Buffalo. 

The  Abbe  Picquet  was  pleased  by  the  obvious  success  of  his 
mission  to  the  Portage,  and  grateful  to  Daniel  de  Joncaire, 
who,  he  says,  "  has  forgotten  nothing  that  would  help  me  ac- 
complish my  purpose,  and  comports  himself  like  a  good  servant 
of  God  and  the  King." 

One  day  when  the  missionary  was  reading  his  breviary  in 
the  neighboring  forest,  all  the  Indians  who  were  in  the  habit 
of  resorting  to  the  portage  fort,  met  there  in  secret  council. 
The  reason  of  this  mysterious  confab  proved  to  be  that,  fear- 
ing for  the  life  of  the  missionary,  they  wished  to  persuade 
him,  in  returning  to  La  Presentation,  not  to  go  by  way  of 
Oswego.  They  begged  Chabert  to  use  his  influence ;  where- 
upon the  commandant,  perhaps  taking  the  thing  seriously, 
sought  his  guest  at  the  edge  of  the  woods.  "  Your  Indians  and 
the  Senecas,"  he  said,  "  know  your  firmness  of  decision.  Learn- 
ing of  your  purpose  to  return  by  way  of  Oswego,  they  have 
urgently  begged  me  to  pledge  you  not  to  do  it.  They  are 
aware  of  the  designs  of  the  English,  who  regard  37ou  as  their 
most  redoubtable  enemy,  the  one  who  can  do  them  most  in- 
jury. They  would  sooner  be  cut  in  pieces  than  that  you  should 
come  to  any  harm.  But,"  added  Chabert,  "  all  that  amounts 
to  nothing,  and  the  Indians,  your  '  children,'  will  lose  you  for- 
ever through  the  devices  of  that  nation  which  hates  you.  On 
my  own  account,  I  beg  you  not  to  pass  that  way." 

Touched  by  this  solicitude,  the  abbe  thanked  the  officer.  He 
was  loth  to  change  his  plans,  but  in  order  not  to  grieve  his  dear 


TWO  FAMOUS  EXPEDITIONS 

Indians,  he  acquiesced  with  their  desires  in  the  vague  formula: 
"  It  shall  be  us  you  wish,  my  children."  ~2 

When,  on  July  3d,  the  abbe  set  out  to  return  to  Fort  Ni- 
agara, he  was  escorted  by  Chabert,  the  commandant,  M.  lli- 
gauville,  interpreter,  and  an  imposing  train  of  savages.  The 
missionary  led  off  with  his  own  Indians;  Chabert  and  Kigau- 
ville  followed  with  the  recruits.  The  return,  down  the  old  port- 
age road  took  on  an  aspect  somewhat  remarkable :  "  Every- 
where as  we  passed,"  wrote  the  abbe,  "  at  every  place  where 
there  were  camps,  cabins,  storehouses,  the  Indians  saluted  us 
with  a  discharge  of  firearms.  That  happened  so  often  that 
I  thought  all  the  trees  along  the  way  were  loaded  with  pow- 
der." 

This  return  to  Niagara,  along  the  old  portage  path  through 
the  woods  and  down  the  green  hills,  presents  a  cheerful  pic- 
ture to  the  imagination.  Nor  is  it  wholly  a  matter  of  imagina- 
tion, for  we  have  his  friend  Lalande's  word  for  it  that  the 
priest,  in  spite  of  the  dignity  of  his  calling,  was  the  embodi- 
ment of  high  spirits  and  good  humor.  "  Of  an  imposing  com- 
manding figure,  he  had  an  open  and  engaging  countenance, 
lie  was  of  a  gay  disposition.  Notwithstanding  the  exactions 
of  his  office,  he  exhaled  only  gayety.  He  made  conversions  to 
the  music  of  instruments ;  he  was  theologian,  orator,  poet. 
He  sang  and  composed  canticles,  now  in  French,  now  in  Iro- 
quois,  with  which  lie  amused  and  interested  the  savages.  He 
was  indeed  a  child  to  some,  a  hero  to  others.  His  mechan- 
ical ingenuity  often  won  the  admiration  of  the  Indians.  In 
short,  he  knew  how  to  use  all  proper  means  for  drawing  prose- 
lytes and  attaching  them  to  him.  As  a  result,  he  had  all  the 
success  that  could  reward  his  industry,  his  talents  and  zeal." 

Such  a  portrait,  drawn  by  an  intimate  and  friendly  hand, 
warrants  a  touch  of  lightness  and  of  color  in  the  present  sketch. 
It  was  evidently  with  a  robust  school-boy's  exuberant  over- 
flow of  animal  spirits  that  the  abbe  led  his  train  of  yelling 
and  powder-wasting  savages  down  the  slopes.  He  might  well 

2-  I.alandr  jrrnvdy  records  the  formidable  vocable  supposed  to  embody 
this  idea:  "  Ethonciaouin"! 


432  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

exult.  He  had  won  a  goodly  following  of  the  primitive  folk 
he  came  to  seek.  His  missionary  tour  prospered.  He  had 
perhaps  done  something  to  check  the  enemy.  It  was  not  the 
hour  for  austerity,  and  so  in  high  spirits,  with  song  and  noisy 
banter  and  salvos  of  muskets,  he  led  the  gay  and  volatile  retinue 
to  the  Lewiston  plateau,  where  he  took  leave  of  his  hosts  of 
the  Portage  and  with  39  Indians  23  embarked  for  Fort  Niagara. 

He  was  received  at  the  fort  with  ceremony  and  a  salvo,  of 
cannon.  The  next  day,  for  the  first  time,  he  gathered  all 
his  Seneca  recruits  in  the  chapel  of  the  fort  where  he  preached 
to  them,  made  them  say  some  prayers,  and  gave  them  presents. 
The  Niagara,  more  than  any  other  place  visited  in  his  tour, 
had  yielded  the  recruits  he  sought. 

It  was  on  July  6th  that  he  finally  embarked,  having  waited 
for  the  chief  of  the  Little  Rapid,  followed  by  a  numerous  flo- 
tilla of  canoes,  and  coasted  the  lake  shore  to  the  eastward. 
Entering  the  Genesee  River  on  the  12th,  the  priest  "  encoun- 
tered a  mass  of  rattlesnakes ;  the  young  Indians  leaped  into 
their  midst  and  killed  42,  without  being  bitten."  After  view- 
ing the  lower  falls  of  the  Genesee  the  journey  was  resumed. 
On  the  14th  they  reached  Sodus  Bay,  which  Father  Picquet 
thought  a  good  place  for  the  French  to  fortify;  "but,"  he 
adds,  "  it  will  be  still  better  to  destroy  Oswego,  and  never  let 
the  English  rebuild  it."  On  the  16th,  he  arrived  opposite 
this  post ;  and  to  keep  the  pledge  given  to  Chabert,  did  not 
stop  there,  but  viewed  the  post  in  passing,  drawing  as  near 
to  shore  in  his  boats  as  seemed  discreet.  He  judged  the  place 
would  be  easy  of  capture:  "  Two  batteries,  each  of  three  12- 
pounders,  would  be  more  than  enough  to  reduce  it  to  ashes." 
He  passed  thence  across  the  lake  to  Frontcnac,  where  he  was 
received  with  ceremony,  half  military  and  half  religious.  By 
July  2()th  he  was  again  at  his  beloved  mission  on  the  Oswegat- 
chie.  The  tour  around  Ontario  had  been  far  from  fruitless. 
It  is  reported  that  in  the  next  year  392  Indian  families  went 
there  to  live,  and  that  on  one  occasion  132  converts  were 
baptised  by  Mgr.  de  Pontbriand,  the  last  French  Bishop  of 

-•'•So  says  Picqucfs  own  memoir:  "  Xous  tt'embarqua  avec  89  sauvayes, 
dans  mon  grand  canot." 


TWO  FAMOUS  EXPEDITIONS  433 

Quebec.  A  banner,  .still  preserved  at  the  Oka  mission,  per- 
petuates the  memory  of  this  event. 

The  conditions  of  trade  at  the  lake  posts  and  on  the  Ni- 
agara had  greatly  interested  Picquet,  whose  comments  thereon 
give  color  to  the  report  that  his  tour  was  made  not  merely  in 
the  capacity  of  a  missionary,  but  as  a  secret  agent  of  the 
French  Government.  He  noted  that  the  great  menace  of 
Oswego  lay  not  in  its  military  strength,  but  in  the  fact  that  it 
gave  to  the  English  an  easy  means  of  communication  with  the 
Indian  tribes  to  the  north  and  west.  He  learned  too  that  the 
storehouse  at  Oswego  was  stocked,  not  only  with  goods  for  the 
Indian  trade,  but  with  articles  which  only  the  French  would 
care  for.  This  pointed  to  an  illicit  trade.  If  the  orders  of 
the  Minister  had  been  followed,  he  wrote,  "  the  Oswego  trade, 
at  least  with  the  Indians  of  Upper  Canada,  would  be  almost 
ruined;  but  it  was  necessary  to  supply  Niagara,  and  especially 
the  Portage,  rather  than  Toronto.  The  difference  between  the 
first  two  of  these  posts  and  the  last  is,  that  300  or  4-00  canoes 
could  come  to  the  Niagara  Portage,  loaded  with  peltries;  "while 
there  could  only  come  by  way  of  Toronto  such  canoes  as  could 
not  pass  by  Niagara  and  on  to  Frontenac,  such  as  the  Otaois 
(Ottawas)  from  the  head  of  the  lake  and  the  Mississagas  ;  so 
that  Toronto  could  not  but  lessen  the  trade  of  these  two  old 
posts,  which  would  have  been  more  than  sufficient  to  stop  all 
the  Indians,  if  the  storehouses  had  been  supplied  with  goods  to 
their  taste.  The  English  should  have  been  imitated  in  the  mat- 
ter of  trinkets  which  they  sell  to  the  Indians,  such  as  silver 
bracelets,  etc.  The  storekeeper  at  Niagara  assured  me  that 
they  compared  and  weighed  them,  and  round  that  the  bracelets 
from  Oswego,  which  were  as  heavy,  of  as  pure  silver  and  more 
elegant,  cost  only  two  beaver-skins,  as  against  ten,  asked  for 
them  at  the  King's  posts;  so  that  we  are  discredited  and  this 
silver-work  remains  a  d^ad  loss  in  the  store-houses." 

The  Indians  relished  French  brandy  better  than  Engli>h 
rum;  but  the  abbe  noticed  that  this  did  not  keep  the  thirst v 
from  going  to  Oswego  for  their  liquor.  "To  destroy  tins 
trade,  the  King's  posts  should  be  supplied  with  the  same  goods 
as  Oswego,  and  at  the  same  price." 


434  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

Note  has  been  made  (Chap.  XIV)  of  difficulties  occasioned 
by  the  liquor  traffic  in  the  earlier  years  of  Fort  Niagara. 
Those  difficulties  never  ceased ;  but  whereas  in  the  earlier  years 
it  was  the  administrators  of  the  Colony  who  sought  to  regu- 
late it,  or  the  priests  who  grieved  at  the  harm  it  did,  in  later 
years  it  was  the  Indians  themselves  who  asked  to  be  saved  from 
this  great  temptation.  Over  and  over  again  in  the  reports  of 
councils  and  conferences,  this  touching  appeal  is  made.  At  a 
general  meeting  of  the  Six  Nations  held  at  Onondaga,  Septem- 
ber 10,  1753,  being  the  conclusion  of  a  long  confab  between 
Sir  William  Johnson  and  the  Mohawks,  the  savages  begged 
that  the  sale  of  rum  at  Oswego  be  stopped;  to  which  Sir  Wil- 
liam replied  that  it  would  greatly  please  the  French,  to  sec 
the  sale  of  liquor  stopped  at  Oswego,  if  they  could  still  sell 
"  what  they  thought  fitt  "  at  Niagara.  "  I  expected  they  [the 
Indians]  would  first  hinder  the  French  selling  liquor  there,  be- 
fore they  proposed  having  it  stopped  at  Oswego."  It  never 
was  stopped  at  either  place. 

In  the  summer  of  1751,  Lieutenant  Benjamin  Stoddart,  sta- 
tioned at  Oswego,  reported  the  passing  of  a  French  expedition, 
bound  for  the  chief  town  of  the  Miamis,  where  the  English 
Avere  trading  and  were  said  to  have  built  a  stone  house.  For 
a  good  many  years  Stoddart  —  usually  referred  to  as  Captain 
—  gave  useful  service  to  New  York  Colony,  at  Oswego  and 
elsewhere,  in  gathering  information  about  the  French.  On 
more  than  one  occasion  he  was  sent  to  Quebec  to  negotiate  the 
exchange  of  prisoners,  and  by  reason  of  these  visits,  was  bet- 
ter informed  than  most  of  the  English  as  to  conditions  in 
Canada.  That  the  General  Assembly  was  slow  in  his  case,  as 
in  some  others,  to  reimburse  expenditures  made  in  the  public 
service,  is  indicated  in  one  of  Stoddart's  outspoken  letters : 
"  I  shall  be  obliged  to  depend  on  the  D — d  Assembly  for  what 
is  due  to  me.  Shall  expect  very  little  for  my  trouble,  as  you 
are  sensible  they  are  such  D — d  S d — Is."  24 

For  many  years  the  Oswego  Supply  Act  named  the  Commis- 
sioner, who  was  sometimes  the  Commandant.  In  174-1,  Lieu- 
tenant John  Lindesay,  in  a  letter  to  the  General  Assembly, 

24  Stoddart  to  Col.  Win.  Johnson,  Mch.  7,  1748-9. 


TWO  FAMOUS  EXPEDITIONS 

recommended  himself  for  Commissary.  He  was  a  Scotchman 
of  good  family,  a  man  of  repute  in  the  Colony,  whose  memory 
is  especially  cherished  to  this  day  at  Cherry  Valley,  of  which 
once  thriving  community  he  was  the  founder.  He  was  given 
the  desired  appointment,2'  and  continued  the  most  able  and 
active  representative  of  English  interests  in  the  Lake  region, 
until  his  death  in  1751.  His  name  usually  appears  in  the  doc- 
uments as  "  Lindsay,"  "  Lindsy  "  or  otherwise  misspelled.  He 
was  so  efficient  in  gathering  the  frontier  news,  and  reporting 
to  his  Government  the  movements  and  plans  of  the  French, 
that  they  presently  came  to  refer  to  him  in  their  correspond- 
ence as  "  Lindsay  the  Spy." 

He  had  his  troubles,  at  Oswego.  In  his  zeal  to  strengthen 
the  place,  he  made  repairs  which  the  Council  of  the  General 
Assembly  were  discouragingly  slow  to  pay  for,  although  he 
had  submitted  estimates,  and  was  diligent  in  dunning.  In  1745, 
he  paid  out  for  repairs  more  than  £193;  but  was  allowed  only 
£140.  His  financial  necessities,  incurred  for  the  good  of  the 
Colony,  are  the  burden  of  many  letters. 

On  an  April  day  in  1750  there  appeared  at  Lieutenant  Linde- 
say's  headquarters  none  other  than  Chabert  de  Joncaire  him- 
self. Although  the  war  between  the  rival  Powers  was  over, 
one  cannot  believe  that  great  cordiality  had  sprung  up  be- 
tween French  and  English  on  Lake  Ontario.  Even  in  times 
of  professed  peace,  French  visitors  at  Oswego  were  few.  It 
was  the  more  remarkable,  that  the  most  notorious  and  mis- 
chievous of  them  all  should  favor  Lindesay  with  a  visit.  Cha- 
bert was  on  his  way  to  Niagara  from  Montreal  where,  as  has 
been  related,  he  had  just  been  commissioned  to  build  and  com- 
mand a  fort  above  the  Falls,  and  it  is  characteristic  that  he 
should  cross  his  rival's  threshold  and  with  complacent  audacity 
tell  of  his  new  commission.  "  He  said,"  Lindesay  reported  to 
the  Governor,  "  he  was  going  to  command  the  new  fort  on  the 
carrying  place  above  Niagara."  The  report  2G  speaks  of  Cha- 

-"  A  sketch  of  his  career  (X.  Y.  Col.  Docs.,  VI,  707,  n^tc)  say.-,  he  \vns 
Commandant  at  (Kweiro  until  Feb.,  1719,  and  thereafter  Indian  Commissary 
nnd  agent.  In  a  letter  to  the  Lords  of  Trade,  June  13,  17.51,  Gov.  Clinton 
speaks  of  him  as  "  Commandant  and  Commissary." 

-ON.  Y.  Col.  Does.  VI,  ?0<J. 


436  AN  OLD  FRONTIER  OF  FRANCE 

bert  as  "  Joncaire's  brother,"  and  tells  of  "  Joncaire  "  as  active 
on  the  Ohio.  Lindesay  was  not  likely  to  confuse  the  two,  and 
his  statement  is  entitled  to  weight  as  showing  that  both  brothers 
shared  in  service  on  the  Ohio. 

Lindesay  kept  well  informed  regarding  Chabert's  operations 
to  the  westward.  May  30th,  he  wrote  to  Governor  Clinton 
that  "  the  French  are  building  a  fortified  house  on  the  river 
Oniagara  between  the  Lakes  Erie  and  Cadaraqui."  In  July 
there  came  in  on  him  a  band  of  savages  led  by  the  Bunt  and  the 
Black  Prince's  son.  These  singular  names  designate  two  chiefs 
who  were  familiar  figures  on  the  Niagara  at  this  period,  but 
regarding  whom  little  that  is  definite  appears  in  the  records. 
They  told  Lindesay  that  the  French  had  not  only  built  at  the 
Niagara  carrying-place,  but  also  on  the  Ohio ;  that  they  had 
landed  a  large  expedition  at  Niagara,  were  going  to  drive  all 
the  English  traders  from  the  Ohio,  and  compel  the  Miamis, 
who  were  most  addicted  to  English  trade,  to  remove  from  their 
old  towns  and  live  where  the  French  should  order  them. 

Lindesay  entertained  the  Bunt,  for  his  friendship  was  worth 
cultivating;  and  sent  on  his  reports,  true  and  false,  for  the 
edification  of  the  Council  and  Assembly.  In  this  same  month 
of  July  Lindesay  had  yet  more  news  from  the  Cayuga  chief 
Attrowaney,  who  had  been  at  Fort  Frontcnac,  "  where  they 
•.vere  building  a  large  ship,  which  was  to  have  three  masts."  He 
had  seen  there  six  cannon  three  yards  long  with  a  wide  bore, 
and  was  told  the  French  were  going  to  cross  the  lake  and  take 
Oswego.  Lindesay  reported  it  to  Colonel  Johnson :  and  prob- 
ably also  to  others :  it  was  perhaps  his  last  report,  for  he  died 
that  year.  His  services  at  Oswego  were  varied  and  valuable ; 
and  the  reports  here  noted  well  illustrate  the  method  by  which 
intelligence  of  the  enemy  was  gathered  on  these  frontiers. 


END    OF    VOL.    I 


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